SANJACINTO,  CAL, 


* 


.  OF  CALIF.  LIBRARY,  LOS 


KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS; 

OE. 

THE  MIDDLE  AGES. 

«          /"** 

EDITED  BY 

REV.  S.  F.  SMITH,  D.  D. 


^Boston: 
Published  by  <D.  Mothrop  &  do. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   I  PAQH 

I* 

KNIGHTS-HOSPITALLERS •       •       7 

CHAPTER  II. 
TRANSITION. ....13 

CHAPTER   III. 
THE  ISLAND  HOME.  .       .      25 


CHAPTER  IV. 
MILITARY  EXPLOITS.  .... 


CHAPTER  V. 

SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE. 


CHAPTER  VI. 
DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE 92 

CHAPTER  VII. 
WANDERINGS. 127 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
FAME  AND  HEROISM 


CHAPTER  IX. 
VALOR  AND  VICTORY  ...........     175 

3 


2133102 


4  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   X.  PAGB 

MERIDIAN  GLORY. 201 

CHAPTER  XI. 
DECLINE  AND  FALL. 240 

CHAPTER   XII. 
THE  SPANISH  ARMADA 267 

CHAPTER   XIII. 
CHTVALRT. 291 

CHAPTER   XIV. 
THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM. 299 

CHAPTER  XV. 

CONCLUSION.    .  ,813 


INTRODUCTION. 


No  events  of  the  Middle  Ages  are  more  attractive 
than  tfte  Crusades.  The  energetic  eloquence  of  Peter 
the  Hermit  —  the  loud  cry  of  the  agitated  multitudes  at 
Clermont,  "It  is  the  voice  of  God!" — the  wild  en- 
thusiasm which  led  300,000  fanatics  from  Europe,  with- 
out arms,  discipline,  or  provisions,  to  perish  on  the 
shores  of  Asia  —  the  noble  spirit  (engendered  in  part 
by  a  religious  zeal  in  behalf  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  and 
in  part  by  the  chivalrous  desire  to  rescue  the  peaceful 
pilgrims  oppressed  by  the  tyranny  of  Mohammedan 
Caliphs)  which  made  kings,  princes,  and  nobles  sell 
their  treasures,  and  mortgage  their  lands,  that  they 
might  assume  the  badge  of  the  Cross  —  the  glorious 
achievements  of  Godfrey  de  Bouillon,  Tancred,  and 
their  companions  —  the  emulous  rivalry  of  Richard 
Cceur  de  Lion  and  of  his  antagonist  Saladin,  alike  in 
courtesies  and  arms  —  the  alternate  severe  sufferings 

6 


6  INTRODUCTION. 

and   brilliant   victories  of  the   Christian   armies, —  are 
familiar  to  the  young  as  "household  words." 

Few  readers,  however,  are  aware  that  while  these 
Crusaders  failed  in  their  first  and  main  purpose  —  the 
establishment  of  a  Christian  dynasty  as  the  rightful 
guardian  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  yet  they  left  behind 
them  in  the  East  a  permanent  and  glorious  record  of 
their  presence  and  dominion.  The  Crusaders  and  their 
descendants  became  the  creators  of  a  great  European 
navy,  the  founders  of  a  powerful  sovereignty  in  the 
Mediterranean,  the  precursors,  in  some  degree,  of  those 
Britons,  who,  in  the  possession  of  their  latest  seat  of 
empire,  are  the  successors  to  their  fame  and  the  in- 
heritors of  their  duties. 


KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

KNIGHTS-HOSPITALLERS. 

"From  Norman  blood  their  lofty  line  they  trace, 
Their  lion  courage  proves  their  gen'rous  race." 

HEBEB'S  Palestine. 

IN  the  year  of  our  Lord  1056,  a  few  merchants  of 
Amalfi,  near  Naples,  after  many  entreaties,  and  with 
no  small  sacrifice  of  costly  gifts,  obtained  permission 
from  the  Caliph  Montessar  Billah  to  found  a  hospital 
within  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  for  the  relief  of  the 
many  poor  and  impotent  persons  who  traveled  in  pil- 
grim's guise  from  all  countries  to  visit  the  land  trodden 
by  the  feet  of  the  Redeemer,  and  to  pray  within  the 
walls  of  the  Holy  City.  This  trifling  boon,  granted 
by  the  kindness  of  heart  or  wrung  from  the  avarice 
of  the  Eastern  ruler,  led  to  the  most  important  results. 

The  Crusades  were  the  great  military  expeditions  of 
the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries,  by  which  the  con- 
federate chieftains  and  peoples  of  the  Western  world 

7 


8  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

designed  to  destroy  the  rulers  and  to  subjugate  to  their 
own  sway  the  empires  of  the  East.  These  vast  military 
movements  were  promoted  by  the  combination  of  many 
circumstances :  by  the  sudden  accession  of  strength  and 
riches  to  the  Norman  barons  in  the  conquest  of  Eng- 
land ;  by  the  desire  of  the  Popes  of  Rome  to  employ 
the  rulers  in  Europe  in  wars  in  distant  lands,  in  order 
that  they  might  the  better  advance  their  own  designs 
upon  the  privileges  of  their  kingdoms;  by  the  reports 
of  the  cruelties  of  the  Eastern  despots  on  the  pilgrims  to 
the  Holy  City,  so  often  repeated  and  so  magnified  by 
every  repetition;  and  by  the  exaggerated  stories  of  the 
fabulous  riches  of  Asia. 

In  A.  D.  1099,  forty-three  years  after  the  concession 
of  this  privilege,  Godfrey  de  Bouillon  brought  the  first. 
Crusade  to  a  successful  termination  by  the  conquest 
of  Jerusalem,  and  by  the  temporary  location  of  his 
army  within  its  walls.  Under  these  circumstances, 
this  Christian  hospital,  founded  by  the  merchants  of 
Amalfi,  necessarily  attracted  his  attention;  and,  the 
chief  direction  being  vacant,  he  gave  it  in  charge  to 
one  of  his  bravest  and  trustiest  knights,  Raymond  du 
Puis.  This  bold  warrior  soon  tired  of  his  peaceful 
charge.  With  a  keen  appreciation  of  the  exigencies 
of  the  situation,  and  with  a  true  discernment  of  the 
greater  use  that 'might  be  made  of  the  institution 
intrusted  to  his  care,  he  at  once  introduced  very  im- 


KNIGHTS-HOSPITALLERS.  9 

portant  changes.  Not  content  to  discharge  the  mo- 
notonous duties  of  attendance  on  wounded  soldiers 
and  wearied  pilgrims,  he  proposed  to  his  fellow-knights 
that  they  should  unite  with  their  errands  of  mercy 
the  recognition  of  a  higher  obligation,  and  should  bind 
themselves  together  for  the  continued  defence  and 
preservation  of  the  Holy  City  from  the  Intidel. 

The  double  task  of  active  warfare  and  of  kindly 
syofpathy  thus  inaugurated,  proved  to  be  in  exact 
harmony  with  the  temper  of  the  times.  This  scheme 
of  Raymond  du  Puis  (continuing  the  original  purpose 
•of  the  hospital,  and  yet  enlarging  its  usefulness  by 
making  it  the  nest  and  nucleus  of  a  local  European 
militia,  bound  together  by  the  strongest  motives  of 
country  and  of  religion  to  maintain  their  hold  on  the 
fair  city  so  lately  fallen  into  their  hands,)  met  with 
universal  approval.  Pope  Paschal  II.  accorded  his 
plenary  blessing.  The  sovereigns  of  Europe  soon  gave 
to  the  remodeled  institution  —  half-military  and  half- 
medicinal —  wide  lands  and  rich  largesses.  Distin- 
guished nobles  expressed  their  willingness  to  -promote 
by  their  personal  service  'the  plans  of  Du  Puis ;  and 
thus  a  new  brotherhood,  combining  the  piety  of  the 
ancient  Hospitaller-monk  with  the  enthusiasm  of  the 
new  Crusader,  suddenly  came  into  existence:  a  new 
Order  was  established,  as  in  a  day  —  an  Order  des- 
tined to  play  a  conspicuous  part  on  the  theatre  of 


10  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

history ;  to  play  an  important  element  in  the  politics 
of  the  East  and  West;  and  to  be  recognized,  under 
many  varying  circumstances,  through  succeeding  gene- 
rations as  the  most  efficient  defence  of  Christendom 
against  the  insults  and  encroachments  of  the  Crescent. 

The  fortunes  of  this  new  Order  were  identical  with 
those  of  the  Crusaders  themselves  during  the  whole 
period  of  their  sojourning  in  the  East.  They  necessari- 
ly assisted,  by  the  very  purpose  of  their  institution,  in. 
gaining  their  victories,  or  they  shared  their  defeats. 

The  Norman  chieftains,  after  a  reign  in  Jerusalem  of 
eighty-eight  years,  were  driven  from  the  Holy  City  by 
the  Saracens,  after  the  loss  of  the  battle  of  Tiberias,  A. 
D.  1187.  The  KnightHospitallers  were  immediately 
expelled  by  the  conqueror,  and  retired  to  Margat,  a 
fortress  then  held  by  the  Crusaders.  From  thence  they 
were  invited,  A.  D.  1194,  by  the  English  king,  Richard 
Cosur  de  Lion,  to  reside  at  Acre,  a  city  on  the  coast, 
mainly  rescued  from  Saladiu*  by  Richard's  personal 
daring.  The  Knight's-Hospitallers,  in  the  face  of  many 

*  The  Sultan  Saladin  showed  favor  to  the  Hospitallers.  A  story  is  told  of 
hia  coming  in  disguise  and  gaining  admission  to  the  Institution,  with  the 
purpose  of  testing  the  reported  kindness  and  self-denial  of  the  knight- 
monks.  He  refused  to  eat  anything  but  a  piece  of  the  flank  of  the  Grand 
Master's  favorite  charger.  After  some  reluctance  his  request  was  conceded, 
and  the  compliance  so  convinced  the  Sultan  of  the  sincerity  and  kindness 
of  the  Hospitallers  that  (the  story  says)  he  made  himself  known,  and  evei 
after  showed  favor  to  the  Order. 


KNIQHTS-HOSPITAIXEBS.  11 

repeated  and  bloody  contests,  retained  their  position  at 
Acre  for  nearly  one  hundred  years.  On  the  final  cap- 
ture of  that  city,  A.  D.  1291,  by  the  Sultan  Khaled,  they 
were  expelled  from  Palestine,  and  took  refuge  in  the 
isle  of  Cyprus,  by  the  permission,  and  on  the  invitation, 
of  its  Norman  ruler,  Henri  de  Lusignan. 

This  expulsion  of  the  Knights-Hospitallers  from  the 
Holy  Land,  although  in  the  first  instance  a  heavy  blow 
afttl  great  discouragement,  most  repugnant  to  their 
cherished  aspirations,  became  in  a  few  years  the  founda- 
tion of  their  fame,  and  the  source  of  largely  increased 
efficiency.  The  Order  lacked  not,  in  its  hour  of  trial, 
leaders  adequate  to  its  needs.  William  and  Fulke  de 
Villaret,  two  noble  brothers,  proved  themselves  equal 
to  the  emergency  by  their  counsels  and  courage.  These 
brave  men  were  of  far  too  lofty  and  impatient  a  nature 
to  accept  a  home  on  sufferance,  however  cheerful  the 
invitation  or  warm  the  welcome.  Convinced  by  the  in- 
exorable logic  of  accomplished  facts,  that  they  could  not 
hope  to  re-establish  a  Western  supremacy  in  Palestine, 
and  well  aware  that  there  were  others  beside  the  Sar- 
acens inimical  to  the  Faith,  they  resolved  not  to  recede 
from  their  proud  position  as  the  foremost  sentinels  of 
Christendom,  but  to  seek  for  other  opportunities  of  at- 
testing their  obedience  to  their  oaths  and  their  devotion 
to  their  precepts  and  principles. 

For  this  purpose,  two  things  were  necessary  in  this 


12  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

great  crisis  of  their  destiny :  the  first,  the  possession  of 
a  home  of  their  own,  in  which  their  Grand  Master 
might  exercise  an  undisputed  authority  over  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Order ;  the  second,  the  creation  of  a  navy, 
by  which  they  might  keep  watch  and  ward  upon  the 
sea,  and  restrain  the  Infidel  corsairs  who  at  that  peri- 
od devastated  the  Christian  populations  on  the  shores 
of  the  Mediterranean.  These  two  important  ends  were 
obtained  by  the  powerful  arm  and  energetic  councils 
of  Fulke  de  Villaret,  who  secured  for  himself  and  for 
his  Order  a  place  of  permanent  sovereignty  —  a  "local 
habitation  and  a  name  "  for  the  future  Sea-Kings  of  the 
Mediterranean. 


CHAPTER  II. 

TRANSITION. 
*^ 

"  Who  would  not  brave  the  battle-fire,  the  wreck, 
To  stand  the  Monarch  of  that  peopled  deck?" 

BTRON,  Corsair. 

THE  island  of  Rhodes,  about  eighty  miles  from  Cy- 
prus, was  selected  by  Villaret  as  the  most  desirable 
home  for  himself  and  his  companions.  It  had  every 
pleasant  and  profitable  recommendation — beautiful  air, 
fertile  soil,  delicious  climate,  splendid  scenery,  materials 
for  ship-building,  and  excellent  harbors.  In  its  center 
rose  the  lofty  mountain  of  Artemira,  covered  with  those 
noble  forests  of  pine  which  to  this  day  supply  masts 
and  timber  for  the  arsenals  of  the  Turkish  Empire.  Its 
lower  hills  produced  on  their  sunny  slopes  lucious 
grapes.  Its  fields,  plentifully  supplied  with  water, 
brought  forth  every  variety  of  fruit  and  of  grain  to  per- 
fection. It  was  a  land  of  oil-olive  and  honey.  Its 
name  was  most  probably  derived  from  the  Greek  word 
rodon,  a  rose,  as  this  flower  blooms  there  in  perpetual 
succession  throughout  the  year ;  although,  according  to 

13 


14  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

others,  it  is  so  called  from  the  rose  of  the  pomegranate, 
which  was  used  in  the  dye  of  the  beautiful  cloths  woven 
by  its  inhabitants,  and  stamped  on  their  coins. 

Rhodes  was  formerly  celebrated  for  its  Colossus, — 
a  gigantic  human  figure  representing  Apollo  (or  the 
Sun),  originally  cast  in  bronze  by  Chares,  a  famous 
Greek  sculptor,  about  300  years  before  the  Christian 
era,  to  commemorate  a  successful  resistance  of  the  Rho- 
dians  to  an  invasion.  It  was  120  feet  in  height,  and 
was  ascended  by  an  interior,  winding  staircase.  It  was 
placed  near  the  entrance  to  the  harbor,  and  some 
modern  travelers*  even  to  this  day  maintain  that  "  the 
two  rocks,  level  with  the  water  at  the  entrance  of  the 
port,  evidently  supported  this  statue."  This  great  fab- 
ric of  the  Colossus,  after  it  had  stood  fifty-six  3'ears,  was 
overthrown  by  an  earthquake.  Its  massive  trunk  and 
huge  fragments  lay  scattered  for  centuries  on  the 
ground,  and  were  collected  A.  D.  672,  and  sold  to  a 
Jewish  merchant,  who  loaded  900  camels,  it  is  said, 
with  the  metal. 

Villaret,  the  Grand  Master  of  the  Hospitallers,  for 
they  had  not  as  yet  attained  the  position,  nor  won  the 
name  of  Sea-Kings,  determined  to  obtain  possession  of 

*  These  are  the  very  words  of  the  French  Marshal  Marmont,  who  visited 
Bhodes  after  the  Crimean  war.  See  Present  State  of  the  Turkish  Um- 
pire. By  MARSHAL  MARMONT.  Harrison:  London,  1854.  P.  20.  The 
general  account  of  the  Colossus  is  taken  from  Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall 
of  the  Roman  Empire.  See  also  Vertot,  Vol.  EL,  p.  304. 


TRANSITION.  15 

this  beautiful  island,  and  to  make  it,  by  the  law  of 
might  and  by  the  right  of  conquest,  the  future  resi- 
dence and  habitation  of  his  Order.  His  bold  design 
was  not  so  rash  as  it  seemed,  and  was  favored  by  a 
variety  of  fortunate  circumstances.  In  the  first  place, 
the  inhabitants  of  Rhodes  were  in  that  state  of  con- 
fusion and  weakness  which  always  accompanies  a  rev- 
olution, or  sudden  change  of  government.  The  ancient 
hereditary  authority  of  the  Greek  Emperor  ruling  at 
Constantinople  had  lately  been  violently  overturned 
and  seized  upon  by  a  band  of  Saracen  Corsairs,  who 
had  not  as  yet  succeeded  in  reconciling  the  native  pop- 
ulation to  their  tyranny  and  usurpation.  In  the  next 
place,  the  Byzantine  or  Greek  Emperor  could  not  assert 
the  re-establishment  of  his  power,  or  molest  the  in- 
vaders, so  that  the  island  was  really  at  this  crisis  open 
to  any  assailants  who  might  prove  themselves  stronger 
than  the  Saracens,  and  more  able  than  they  to  maintain 
their  hold  of  it.  Lastly,  many  of  the  neighboring  states 
in  the  Mediterranean  encouraged  this  contemplated 
project  of  the  Knights.  The  Pope  of  Rome,  who  ex- 
ercised a  greater  authority  among  nations  than  he  does 
at  present,  gave  his  blessing  to  the  undertaking,  and 
showed  more  substantial  tokens  of  approval  by  confer- 
ring on  Villaret  and  his  fraternity  the  treasures  and 
revenues  of  the  Templars,  unjustly  confiscated  after  the 
cruel  trial  and  death  of  their  heroic  chief,  James  de 


16  KNIGHTS   AND   SEA-KINGS. 

Molay.  The  Christian  republics  also  of  Genoa  and 
Venice,  with  the  rulers  of  France,  Spain,  and  Cyprus, 
gave  Villaret  assurances  of  their  sympathy  and  promises 
of  support,  as  they  were  all  most  desirous  that  so 
central  a  situation  should  be  wrested  from  the  Saracen 
Corsairs,  who  would  prey  on  their  commerce  and  en- 
slave their  mariners,  and  should  be  transferred  to  the 
custody  of  an  Order  dedicated  to  the  service  of  the 
Cross  and  to  the  defence  of  Christendom. 

The  conquest  of  Rhodes,  however,  was  no  easy  task. 
The  combatants  on  both  sides  were  brave  men,  stim- 
ulated by  the  strongest  motives  to  noble  deeds  and 
martial  daring.  The  Knights  were  animated  by  the 
aspirations  of  ambition,  the  urgent  need  of  a  resting- 
place  and  home,  the  hatred  engendered  by  prolonged 
warfare  and  by  the  temper  of  the  times  against  a 
scorned  and  loathed  creed.  The  Corsairs  were  in- 
flamed, on  their  part,  by  the  most  powerful  incentives 
which  influence  mankind,  the  conviction  that  hearth 
and  home,  wives  and  children,  religion,  honor,  liberty, 
and  life  depended  on  the  combat.  For  weeks  the  issues 
of  the  strife  were  doubtful ;  the  Saracens,  protected  by 
their  walls,  made  a  prolonged  and  obstinate  resistance. 
At  last  the  valor  and  perseverance  of  Villaret  prevailed. 
In  the  face  of  a  fierce  tempest  of  stones,  flung  from  pon- 
derous machines,  and  of  a  great  flight  of  arrows  dis- 
charged by  the  besieged,  Villaret,  after  the  loss  of  many 


TKANSITION.  17 

brave  associates,  forced  an  entrance  into  the  fortress, 
and  secured  the  prize.     He  admitted  the  townsmen  to 
mercy,  as  if  for  their  sake  he  had  made  war,  and  per- 
mitted the  Saracens  to  retire  with  their  ships  to   the' 
neighboring  coasts  of  Asia  Minor. 

Villaret  knew  full  well  that  the  dangers  to  which  he 
was  exposed  had  not  ended  with  his  victory  ;  he  could 
expect  no  forbearance  from  his  foes.  He  had  not 
only  ttk^vin  the  prize,  but  to  hold  it  against  all  comers 
by  the  might  of  his  arm,  the  efficiency  of  his  ships,  and 
the  gallantry  of  his  soldiers. 

His  late  antagonists,  on  their  ejection  from  Rhodes, 
had  sought  and  found  shelter  and  protection  at  Broussa, 
a  city  of  Bithynia,  where  at  that  time  the  Emir  Oth- 
man,  the  famous  founder  of  the  power  and  empire  of 
the  Ottoman  Turks,  kept  his  court.  This  successful 
chieftain  constituted  himself  the  champion  of  the  in- 
jured servants  of  Mahomet,  prepared  a  naval  expe- 
dition, and  pledged  himself  to  reinstate  the  Saracen 
Corsairs  in  their  home.  With  a  boldness  scarcely 
warranted  by  the  inexperience  of  his  Knights  as  sailors, 
yet  amply  justified  by  the  result,  Villaret  resolved  to 
meet  his  new  enemv  with  his  galleys  on  the  open 
sea,  rather  than  await  his  attack  on  land,  or  endure  the 
miseries  of  a  siege.  He  issued  forth  with  all  his  vessels, 
and  effectually  repulsed  the  flotilla  of  Othman,  so 
that  this  mighty  conqueror  for  the  first  time  found 


18"  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

his  career  of  triumph  stayed,  and  his  soldiers  confronted 
with  better  warriors  than  themselves.  This  engage- 
ment was  remarkable  as  the  first  victory  of  the  Hos- 
pitallers in  their  new  career  as  Sea-Kings,  and  as  the 
precursor  of  that  violent,  unceasing  internecine  strife 
which  raged  for  five  long  centuries  between  the  descen- 
dants of  Othman  and  the  successors  of  Villaret. 

The  Grand  Master  of  the  Hospitallers  now  felt  him- 
self safe  in  his  new  possession.  His  first  care  was 
the  greater  security  of  his  fortifications.  He  minutely 
examined,  repaired,  and  strengthened  every  battlement, 
fortalice,  wall,  and  bastion.  Whatever  art,  science, 
or  expenditure  could  do  towards  rendering  the  town 
and  fortress  of  Rhodes  impregnable  was  at  once  un- 
dertaken, and  eventually  accomplished.  The  second 
care  of  Villaret  was  to  strengthen  and  augment  his 
navy.  For  this  purpose  he  imposed  a  tax  upon  the 
various  properties,  domains,  and  priories  of  his  Order  in 
the  different  countries  of  Christendom,  and  expended 
the  proceeds  in  the  purchase  or  construction  of  gal- 
leys. 

These  early  vessels  were  very  different  from  the 
wooden  leviathans  which  a  few  years  since  were  famed 
as  the  wooden  walls  of  England ;  and  were  still  more 
unlike  the  dark,  cumbrous  iron-clads  of  the  present. 
These  galleys  were  low-built  vessels,  navigated  with 
both  oars  and  sails.  They  were  120  or  130  feet  long, 


TRANSITION.  19 

and  from  9  to  10  deep.  They  had  two  masts,  made 
from  the  single  trunk  of  a  tree,  which  could  be  let 
down  or  put  up  at  the  pleasure  of  the  mariner.  They 
were  provided  with  twenty-five  to  thirty  banks,  or 
benches,  divided  in  the  centre,  two  oars  to  each,  bank, 
one  on  each  side  of  the  vessel,  which  oars  were  pulled 
by  four,  five,  or  six  rowers,  generally  chained  by  theii 
ankles  to  the  floor  or  to  the  bank.  These  rowers  wen 
for  tKe  most  part  slaves,  or  sailors  forming  part  of  thi 
crews  of  the  Saracen  or  Turkish  vessels  which  fell  at 
prizes  to  their  ships.  The  galleys  were  the  chief  vessel: 
used  in  the  naval  warfare-  of  these  days,  and  the  resul  ; 
greatly  depended  on  the  skill  in  boarding  and  in  the 
personal  courage  of  the  combatants  in  hand-to-hand 
conflicts.  Each  national  fleet  had  also  one  or  two 
larger  vessels,  named  a  galeasse,  or  caracca,  used  at 
this  time  less  for  fighting  than  for  the  parade  of  state 
occasions,  and  for  the  transport  of  ambassadors  and  po- 
tentates. These  flagships  were  sometimes  richly  or- 
namented. Short  sentences  of  Holy  Scripture  were 
inscribed  in  golden  letters  on  the  sterns.  Their  sails 
were  striped  in  colors  of  red  and  blue.  They  were 
often  "pavilioned"  with  the  fla^s  of  the  maritime  na- 
tions and  of  their  chief  captains,  and  the  sides  of  the 
vessels  were  sometimes  dressed  in  silver  and  gold. 
Shakespeare  probably  had  in  his  eye  or  memory  «ome 
such  gorgeous  galeasse,  when  he  described  the  vessel 


20  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

of    Cleopatra,   Queen    of    Egypt,   upon    the    Cydnus, 
"  when  first  she  saw  Marc  Antony  "  — 

"  The  barge  she  sat  in,  like  a  burnished  throne 
Burned  on  the  water:  the  poop  was  beaten  gold: 
Purple  the  sails,  and  so  perfumed,  that 
The  winds  were  lovesick  with  them:  the  oars  were  silver, 
Which  to  the  tune  of  flutes  kept  time."  * 

There  were  other  vessels  of  war  in  use  at  this  period 
of  a  smaller  build ;  these  were  named  brigantines,  or 
dromones.  They  had  no  resemblance  to  English  and 
American  brigs,  but  were  light,  undecked  vessels,  navi- 
gated with  either  oars  or  sails.  They  had  from  twenty 
to  twenty-four  banks  of  oars,  with  only  one  man  to  each 
oar.  They  were  chiefly  used  by  the  Corsairs,  the 
rowers  forming  the  crew,  and  keeping  their  arms  under 
their  rowing-benches  for  immediate  use. 

The  galleys  of  the  Knights  always  carried,  in  addition 
to  their  sailors  and  slave  rowing-crew,  a  picked  body 
of  trained  fighting  men.  These  were  at  this  period 
known  by  a  curious  designation.  They  were  called 
«*  Turkopoliers,"  or  "  The  Turkopolieris."  The  title  is 
derived  from  a  Greek  word,  paulos,  a  child,  and  was 
intended  to  describe  youths  descended  from  European 
fathers  and  Syrian  mothers.  These  youth  were  edu- 
cated in  the  Christian  faith,  and  were  brought  up  at  the 
expense  and  under  the  auspices  of  the  Knights.  Clothed 

•  Antony  and  Cleopatra,  Act.  IL,  scene  1L 


TRANSITION.  21 

after  the  fashion  of  an  Arabian  and  Eastern  rathei 
than  of  a  Western  army,  inured  to  the  peculiarities  of 
the  climate,  trained  to  discipline  and  military  exercises, 
they  formed  an  efficient  auxiliary  force,  either  as  infan- 
try soldiers  or  as  marines.  An  English  Knight  was 
always  intrusted  with  the  chief  command  of  this 
corps,  under  the  title  of  "  The  Turkopolier." 

A  galley  equipped  for  war,  at  this  period,  had,  below 
the*cfeck,  the  gang  of  slave-rowers,  confined  to  their 
darksome  hold,  and  chained  to  their  rowing-bench. 
On  the  deck  were  two  steersmen,  for  such  was  the 
custom,  at  the  helm,  the  captain  Knight,  with  his 
allotted  band  of  noble  companions  in  their  panoply  of 
burnished  brass,  on  the  poop,  the  sailors,  attending  to 
their  respective  duties  on  ship-board,  the  Turkopolieri 
soldiers,  provided  with  offensive  and  defensive  arms, 
with  bows  and  arrows  which  they  discharged  from 
the  forecastle  and  poop,  with  swords  for  close  combat, 
with  long  hand-pikes,  or  "spontoons,"  short  hand- 
pikes,  with  which  they  endeavored  either  to  effect 
a  boarding,  or  to  injure  the  sails  and  rigging  of 
their  opponents.  Sometimes  the  deck  contained  a 
strong  timber-built  machine,  placed  between  the  masts, 
for  casting  huge  stones  for  the  purpose  of  sinking  an 
antagonist;  or  a  movable  crane,  for  hoisting  upon  the 
enemy's  ship  a  huge  basket  filled  with  soldiers.  The 
language  of  signals,  so  necessary  and  brought  to  such 


22  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KINGS. 

perfection  in  the  complicated  naval  evolutions  of  these 
days,  was  but  little  known  or  practised.  At  night  the 
simple  orders,  which  it  was  alone  possible  for  the  ad- 
miral to  give,  were  conveyed  by  the  arrangement  of  the 
lights  in  the  leading  galley. 

Such  was  the  general  mode  of  naval  warfare  at  this 
period,  though  within  a  few  years  a  new  and  far  more 
destructive  element  was  added  in  the  liquid  fire  first 
invented  in  the  Greek  arsenals  of  Constantinople,  but 
brought  quickly  into  general  use,  and  poured  out  of 
iron  tubes  from  ship  to  ship,  or  from  wall  and  rampart, 
in  red-hot  streams  upon  the  combatants. 

The  conquest  of  Rhodes  carried  with  it  the  necessary 
submission  of  some  of  the  small  neighboring  islands. 
The  most  valuable  was  the  little  island  called  Syma,  as 
it  was  celebrated  for  its  ship-carpenters,  who  materially 
assisted  by  their  skillful  craftmanship  in  the  recon- 
struction and  enlargement  of  the  navy  of  the  Cider. 
There  was  another  commodity  for  which  Syma  was 
renowned — sponges,  of  which  there  are  fifty  different 
sorts.  The  sponge  has  life,  though  of  so  slight  a  kind 
as  to  be  called  the  most  torpid  of  zoophytes.  These 
sponges  all  live  and  grow  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  and 
can  only  be  reached  by  skillful  divers.  There  were  no 
diving-bells  invented  in  those  days,  and  therefore  a 
curious  law  was  enacted  in  the  island  of  Syma,  that  no 
young  man  should  be  allowed  to  marry  fintil  he  could 
dive  down  a  certain  distance,  and  remain  for  a  certain 


TRANSITION.  23 

specified  time  under  the  water.  Marshal  Marmont  gives 
this  account  of  his  visit  to  this  island,  A.  D.  1854  :  — 

44 1  went  to  the  sponge  fishery.  It  is  a  laborious  and 
dangerous  employment,  but  so  lucrative  that  five  or 
six  successful  days  afford  those  engaged  in  it  the  means 
of  support  for  an  entire  year.  The  sponge  is  attached 
to  rocks  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  serving  as  a  retreat 
to  myriads  of  crustaceous"  (i.  e.,  shell-covered,  with 
joints;  from  crusta,  a  shell)  "creatures  which  occupy 
its  cavities.  The  fishermen  dive  for  it  to  the  depth  of 
even  a  hundred  feet,  and  sometimes  continue  for  five  or 
six  minutes  under  water,  unless  the  quantity  of  sponge 
they  may  have  collected  becomes  inconvenient  or  un- 
manageable, when  they  are  hauled  to  the  surface  by  the 
crew  of  the  boat  to  which  they  belong.  The  divers 
occasionlly  fall  victims  to  the  sharks  that  attack  them 
in  the  water.  The  sponge  is  prepared  for  market  by 
being  pressed,  to  dislodge  the  animalculae  it  contains,  and 
afterwards  washed  in  lye  to  deprive  it  of  mucilaginous 
matter." 

The  Mediterranean,  even  at  this  early  period,  was 
the  scene  of  considerable  commerce.  So  frequent  and 
important  was  the  interchange  and  barter  of  goods 
between  the  Republic  of  Genoa  and  the  States  of  Bar- 
bary,  that  there  are  old  charters  of  this  date  yet  extant, 
dictating  its  terms  and  enforcing  its  regulations.  Genoa 
was  the  most  extensive  mart  for  woolen  cloths  then  ex- 


24  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

isting  in  the  world,  and  the  common  articles  of  this  in- 
ternational traffic  included  woolen  cloth,  corn,  wool,  oil 
(for  the  manufacturers  of  soap),  hides,  tanned  leather, 
wax,  gum,  dates,  dried  fruits,  drugs  and  perfumes  in 
every  variety.  Villaret,  after  his  great  triumph  over 
the  Othman  fleet,  adopted,  with  much  wisdom,  as  far 
as  circumstances  would  permit,  a  policy  of  peace.  He 
quickly  declared  the  harhor  of  Rhodes  to  be  a  free  port, 
and  invited  to  it  the  ships  of  all  Christian  nations. 

In  a  few  years  the  transition  inaugurated  and  so 
successfully  carried  out  by  himself,  was  completed.  He 
and  his  Knights  soon  found  abundant  employment  for 
the  galleys  of  the  Order,  in  acting  at  one  time  as  a 
trusted  convoy  to  the  rich  argosies  of  Genoa  or  Venice ; 
in  carrying  at  another,  with  becoming  dignity,  the 
higher  members  of  their  fraternity  on  their  visits  to  their 
priories,  or  on  their  more  solemn  embassies  to  pope  or 
prince;  or  in  attacking,  as  opportunity  might  allow, 
with  the  certain  swoop  of  an  eagle  upon  his  prey,  the 
marauding  vessels  of  the  Corsair  or  the  Turk.  Thus 
the  sons  of  the  Norman  chieftains,  the  well-born,  chival- 
rous Knights  of  the  Order  of  the  Hospitallers,  adapted 
themselves  to  their  altered  circumstances,  and  trans- 
ferred the  lofty  courage,  bold  zeal,  and  fervent  devotion 
to  the  Cross,  which  had  distinguished  the  soldiers  of 
Palestine,  to  the  new  duties  required  of  the  "Sea- 
Kings  of  the  Mediterranean." 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  ISLAND   HOME. 

„,,  "  Far  as  the  breeze  can  bear,  the  billows  foam, 

Survey  our  Empire,  and  behold  our  Home." 

[BYBON,  Corsair. 

THE  conquerors  of  Rhodes,  after  the  defeat  of  Oth- 
man,  were  left  in  peaceful  possession  of  the  fair  home 
they  had  won.  During  the  next  170  years  no  bark  of 
the  Moslem  nor  heel  of  the  invader  defiled  their  soil. 
The  fame  of  this  conquest,  combined  with  the  beauty 
and  fertility  of  the  land  itself,  caused  not  only  an 
immediate  increase  to  the  reputation  of  the  Order, 
but  gave  a  vast  accession  to  its  members.  Every  court 
in  Europe  sent  its  soldiers  of  fortune  to  enlist  under  the 
banners  of  Villaret.  So  great  and  rapid  was  the  multi- 
plication of  claimants  for  admission  to  the  Fraternity 
that  it  was  found  expedient  to  establish  separate  na- 
tions, or  "Langues,"  and  to  place  each  nation  under  its 
own  special  commander.  Three  of  these  Langues  were 
assigned  to  French  Knights,  under  the  title  of  France, 
Provence,  and  Auvergne.  Two  were  allotted  to  Spain 

25 


26  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

and  Portugal,  under  the  langues  of  Arragon  and  Castile. 
One  langue  was  given  respectively  to  Italy,  Germany, 
and  England.  The  wealth  of  the  Fraternity  was  ma- 
terially augmented,  and  a  skillful  and  powerful  navy 
constructed,  so  that  the  naval  prowess  and  gallant  ad- 
ventures of  the  Sea-Kings  were  celebrated  in  all  lands. 
Within  a  few  years  their  dominion  extended  beyond 
the  narrow  limits  of  their  sea-girt  home  ;  and  the  strong 
fortress  of  Smyrna,  on  the  main  land  of  Asia  Minor, 
about  twenty  miles  from  Rhodes,  submitted  to  their 
sway.  These  accessions  of  territory  were  won  under 
the  auspices  of  the  Grand  Masters  of  the  Order,  who 
•were  elected  to  their  high  office  for  their  achievements 
in  the  fight,  skill  in  seamanship,  personal  courage,  or 
successful  pursuit  and  capture  of  ships.  In  1365  A.  D., 
an  illustrious  chief,  Raymond  Beranger,  found  himself 
able  to  muster  to  his  call  one  hundred  vessels.  The 
Corsairs  of  Egypt,  emboldened  at  this  time  by  the  ex- 
tensive conquests  of  their  caliphs,  made  frequent  preda- 
tory incursions  upon  Cyprus.  The  ruler  of  that  island 
in  his  hour  of  need  invoked  the  assistance  of  his  brave 
neighbors  and  well-tried  allies  at  Rhodes.  Raymond 
Beranger,  not  content  with  the  temporary  repulse  of 
the  marauders,  persuaded  the  King  of  Cyprus  to  make 
with  him  a  combined  attack  upon  the  stronghold  of 
Alexandria,  and  to  beard  the  lion  in  his  den.  The  ex- 
pedition was  agreed  to ;  and  so  well  was  the  secret 


THE   ISLAND   HOME.  27 

of  the  destination  of  the  assembled  fleet  preserved,  that 
the  flotilla  reached  the  port,  and  the  Turkopoliers  had 
under  the  shadow  of  the  night  disembarked  for  the  as- 
sault, before  the  enemy  had  discovered  their  approach. 
No  sooner  was  the  note  of  warning  sounded,  than  the 
walls  were  quickly  lined  with  soldiers  and  townsmen. 
The  besieged,  protected  by  their  ramparts,  repulsed 
their  assailants,  and  with  push  of  pike  or  stroke  of 
scimitar  drove  them  backwards  into  the  fosses  and 
breaches  of  the  fortress,  and  rolled  down  upon  them 
huge  blocks  of  stone.  New  combatants  took  the  place 
of  the  dead  and  wounded,  and,  heedless  of  the  fate  of 
their  companions,  endeavored  to  reach  with  their  scal- 
ing-ladders the  summit  of  the  walls. 

"The  stubborn  spearmen  still  made  good 
Their  dark  impenetrable  wood, 
Each  stepping  "where  his  comrade  stood 
The  instant  that  he  fell."  * 

They  were,  however,  overwhelmed  and  driven  back 
by  the  storm  of  arrows,  and  by  the  streams  of  burning 
oil  and  liquid  fire,  which  pierced  the  coats  of  mail 
of  the  men-at-arms,  and  burnt  the  Eastern  robes  and 
turbans  of  the  Turkopoliers,  and  compelled  them  to 
rush  into  the  sea  to  extinguish  their  flaming  vestments. 
The  Knights  and  their  brave  marines  after  a  short  in- 
terval renewed  the  contest,  and,  animated  by  the  voice 

*  Scott,  Marmion. 


28  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

and  the  example  of  their  trusted  leader,  overcame  every 
obstacle,  gained  a  footing  on  the  parapet,  and  throwing 
themselves  in  force  into  the  battlements,  made  them- 
selves masters  of  the  nearest  houses,  and  obtained  pos- 
session of  the  place.  After  so  obstinate  a  defence,  and 
the  loss  of  so  many  brave  soldiers,  Beranger  was  too 
weak  to  retain  his  conquest.  Contenting  himself  with 
exacting  from  his  foes  the  penalty  of  their  presumption 
by  burning  their  ships,  and  by  carrying  away  as  slaves 
many  of  the  soldiers  and  townsmen,  he  returned  laden 
with  prisoners  and  rich  booty. 

The  work  of  the  valiant  Grand  Master  on  this  occa- 
sion was  not  exclusively  that  of  devastation  and  destruc- 
tion. He  had  the  satisfaction  of  releasing  many  of  his 
own  Fraternity,  and  Christian  captives  of  other  lands, 
from  the  slave  dungeons  of  the  Turks.  Among  these 
was  a  nobleman  of  high  birth  and  lineage,  the  Chevalier 
Pierre  St.  George,  a  nephew  of  the  reigning  Pope  Urban 
V.  Beranger  intended  in  his  own  person  to  restore  him 
to  his  uncle,  and  to  accompany  him  to  the  Papal  court 
at  Avignon;  but  his  purpose  was  frustrated  by  the 
death  of  Urban.  This  bold  attack  on  Alexandria  was 
a  lesson  never  forgotten  by  the  Turks,  who  henceforth 
abstained  from  any  descent  upon  the  unarmed  popu- 
lation of  Cyprus. 

Raymond  Beranger  and  his  Order  spent  much  time 
and  money  in  strengthening  and  beautifying  their  be- 


THE  ISLAND   HOME.  29 

loved  home.  There  was  at  Rhodes  an  outer  and  an 
inner  harbor.  For  the  protection  of  the  outward  harbor 
two  moles  or  arms  were  constructed  running  out  into 
the  sea,  and  defended  at  their  extremities  by  two 
towers,  St.  Nicholas  and  St.  Elmo,  both  well  furnished 
with  artillery.  These  towers  protected  a  great  number 
of  vessels  —  merchant  ships,  galleys,  caiques,  and  feluc- 
cas. The  harbor  was  alive  with  all  the  bustle  and  life 
of  an -active  commercial  port.  Beyond  this  was  an  inner 
harbor,  entered  by  a  narrow  opening  between  two  forti- 
fied bastions,  within  which  the  galleys*  of  the  Knights 
were  moored.  The  town  itself  was  rebuilt  at  much 
cost  around  this  inner  harbor.  On  the  eastern  side 
were  the  houses  of  the  merchants  and  townsmen,  the 
habitations  of  the  sailors,  mechanics,  and  artisans,  the 
quarter  allotted  to  the  Jews,  and  one  or  two  convents 
or  monasteries.  The  western  portion  was  occupied  by 
the  Grand  Master  and  the  resident  members  of  the 
Fraternity. 

The  chief  pride  was  the  street  of  the  Knights  (the 
Strada  dei  Cavalieri,  as  it  was  named),  extending 
throughout  the  length  of  the  town.  It  is  still  to  be 
seen  almost  as  it  was  in  its  original  splendor.  In  this 
street  stood  the  majestic  palatial  castle  of  the  Grand 
Masters,  the  noble  church  of  St.  John  with  its  lofty 
cupalo,  the  palace  of  the  Bishop,  the  houses  of  the 
chapter,  a  large  monastery,  and,  forming  its  especial 


SO  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

feature,  an  extensive  barrack  for  the  Turkopoliers,  with 
the  large  hotels,  auberges,  or  noble  mansions  of  the 
different  languages,  where  the  Knights  and  their  fol- 
lowers of  each  European  nation  lived  in  common.  This 
Strada  dei  Cavalieri  was  a  long  and  picturesque  avenue 
of  Gothic  palaces,  bearing  to  this  day  over  the,  lintels 
of  their  handsome  gateways,  and  on  their  inner  court- 
yards, the  undefaced  armorial  bearings  of  their  respec- 
tive nationalities.  The  ancient  arms  of  France,  the 
noble  fleur-de-lis,  are  to  be  traced  even  by  the  modern 
traveler  in  all  parts  of  the  town.  The  suburbs  of 
Rhodes,  adorned  with  the  kiosks  or  summer-houses 
of  the  Knights,  sparkling  streams,  splendid  terraces, 
luxuriant  gardens,  and  refreshed  with  the  cool  air  of  its 
central  mountain,  were  peculiarly  lovely  and  attractive. 

"There  mildly  dimpling,  ocean's  cheek 
Reflects  the  tint  of  many  a  peak, 
Caught  by  the  laughing  tides  that  lave 
This  Eden  of  the  Eastern  wave."  * 

The  Sea-Kings  were  kind  and  beneficent  masters. 
The  people  subject  to  their  rule  had  no  tyrannical  ex- 
cesses to  lament,  and  no  grievous  exactions  to  complain 
of,  but  found  at  all  times  their  happiness  and  prosperity 
promoted  to  the  utmost.  The  best  proof' of  this  is  the 
famous  legend  of  the  encounter  of  a  Knight  of  Rhodes 
with  a  huge  dragon,  that  for  some  time  brought  misery 

•  Byron,  Giaour. 


THE  ISLAND  HOME.  31 

and  destruction  upon  the  inhabitants.  The  story,  often 
told  both  in  prose  and  verse,  is  so  good  in  itself,  and  so 
redounds  to  the  credit  of  all  concerned,  that  it  will  bear 
repetition.  It  teaches  that  most  difficult  of  all  lessons 
for  a  youth  to  learn,  the  duty  of  obedience.  The  cir- 
cumstances are  recorded  in  the  pages  of  Abb6  Vertot, 
the  learned  French  historian  of  the  Knights-Hospital- 
lers, as  follows : 

\ViJ[-hin  a  few  years  of  the  occupation  of  Rhodes  by 
the  Knights  of  St.  John,  the  island  was  afflicted  with 
a  dreadful  visitation.  A  huge  amphibious  monster, 
half  crocodile  and  half  serpent,  able  to  live  on  land  or 
in  water,  made  its  home  in  a  cavern  at  the  foot  of  a  hill 
about  two  miles  from  Rhodes.  It  was  a  merciless 
beast,  and  devoured  sheep,  cows,  and  horses;  and  often- 
times the  shepherds  and  cow-boys  fell  a  prey  to  its 

voracity. 

"  Oh !  when  it  seized  on  prey  and  plunder, 
Its  greedy  jaws  gaped  wide  asunder. 
In  a  deep  gulf  of  gloom  and  blood 
In  rows  its  teeth  all  jagged  stood; 
A  sword-like  tongue :  and  through  the  lashes 
Of  its  small  eyelids  darted  flashes!" 

On  the  summit  of  the  hill,  below  which  this  terrible 
monster  had  made  his  resort,  was  a  small  chapel  ded- 
icated to  St.  Stephen,  and  the  pilgrims  to  this  shrine 
frequently  fell  unawares  into  his  clutches. 


82  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

"For  like  hell's  serpent  proud  rebelling, 
He  watcheth  at  foot  of  Stephen's  dwelling; 
And  should  some  pilgrim  out  of  breath 

But  turn  into  the  path  forbidden, 
The  monster  dragged  him  to  his  death 

By  rushing  from  his  covert  hidden."  i 

Many  of  the  Knights,  and  those  the  bravest  of  their 
Order,  at  different  times,  sallied  out  to  try  to  kill  him  ; 
but  not  one  returned  alive.  The  Grand  Master  at  last 
ordered  that  no  other  Knight  should  engage  in  so 
hazardous  an  enterprise,  nor  undertake  a  task  in  which 
it  seemed  impossible  for  man  to  succeed.  All  obeyed 
his  commands  except  one  Knight  of  Provence,  Dieu- 
donn6  de  Gozon,  who,  in  spite  of  his  chiefs  prohibition, 
and  in  face  of  the  evil  fate  of  his  friends,  formed  in 
secret  the  design  of  combating  the  monster,  determined 
to  die  in  the  attempt,  or  to  effect  the  deliverance  of  the 
island. 

With  this  purpose  in  his  mind,  he  retired  to  his  own 
Castle  de  Gozon,  in  Languedoc,  and  having  previously 
discovered,  by  an  observation  from  a  safe  distance,  that 
the  huge  beast  had  no  scales  on  his  belly,  he  founded 
on  that  fact  his  plan  of  attack.  He  caused  a  figure 
of  the  monster  to  be  made  in  wood  and  painted  of  pre- 
cisely the  same  size  and  color  of  the  dragon.  He  next 
trained  two  3Toung  wolf-dogs,  and  taught  them,  at  his 
call,  to  attack  the  belly  of  the  monster,  while  he,  at  the 
same  time,  arrayed  in  full  armor  and  mounted  on  horse- 


THE  ISLAND  HOME.  33 

back,  pretended,  on  his  part,  with  lance  in  hand,  to 
wound  it  in  different  parts. 

"  Two  wolf-hounds  took  he,  fierce  of  breed, 
Huge,  strong,  and  with  the  swiftest  speed; 
And  where  the  paunch  was  bare  and  white 
And  least  defended  from  their  bite, 
He  bade  his  dogs  direct  their  fury — 
Their  teeth,  as  in  the  flesh,  to  bury. 
At  first  his  snorting  charger  reared 
And  started  when  the  foe  he  near'd; 
#•*""  His  savage  dogs,  too,  shrunk  in  terror; 

But  soon  he  train' d  them  from  their  error. 

This  course  he  constantly  pursued 

Till  three  times  was  the  moon  renewed." 

At  the  end  of  three  months  he  returned  to  Rhodes, 
and,  without  any  communication  with  his  chief,  pro- 
ceeded to  the  Chapel  of  St.  Stephen,  with  his  esquires, 
hounds,  and  horse.  Then,  having  commended  himself 
to  Divine  protection,  he  donned  his  coat  of  mail,  took 
lance  in  hand,  encouraged  his  dogs  and  charger,  and 
rode  alone  towards  the  cavern  of  the  monster.  The 
venomous  brute,  enraged  at  his  defiance,  rushed  forth 
with  open  mouth  and  flashing  eyes.  De  Gozon,  pre- 
pared for  the  conflict,  gave  him  a  thrust  with  his  lance 
which  goaded  him  to  greater  fury,  but  did  not  penetrate 
his  scales.  He  prepared  to  repeat  his  stroke,  but  his 
horse,  frightened  at  the  cries  and  odor  of  the  serpent, 
refused  to  advance,  whereon  De  Gozon  disengaged  him- 
self from  his  saddle,  and  rushing  on,  sword  in  hand, 
3 


34  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KINGS. 

accompanied  by  his  staunch  hounds,  attacked  the  mon- 
ster, and  gave  him  many  cuts  without  penetrating  his 
thick  scales.  The  enraged  beast  at  last  threw  him  to 
the  ground  with  a  stroke  of  his  tail,  whereon  the  two 
wolf-hounds  seized  upon  the  belly  of  the  monster,  and 
kept  fast  hold,  in  spite  of  all  efforts  to  shake  them 
off.  De  Gozon,  encouraged  by  this  help,  recovered 
himself,  and,  encouraging  his  hounds,  pushed  his  sword 
up  to  its  hilt  in  a  spot  undefended  by  scales,  and  made 
a  large  wound,  from  which  poured  streams  of  blood. 

"  And  ere  his  dogs  their  hold  let  go, 
He  started  from  the  earth  below; 
And  where  the  paunch  was  white  and  naked 
His  weapon's  thirst  he  eager  slaked: 
Up  to  the  hilt  he  plunged  his  sword, 
And  life-blood  in  black  torrents  pour'd." 

The  tidings  of  his  victory  and  the  death  of  the  mon- 
ster were  quickly  told  in  the  town  of  Rhodes.  The 
inhabitants  came  in  multitudes  to  meet  him.  Loud  ac- 
clamations welcomed  the  conqueror  hero  into  the  town, 
and  his  companion  Knights  brought  him  in  high  triumph 
to  the  portals  of  the  palace  of  the  Grand  Master. 

"  A  thousand  voices  from  the  crowd, 
'  That  is  the  dragon,'  shout  aloud, 
'Which  slaughter' d  herdsmen,  flocks,  and  cattle, 
Until  De  Gozon  won  the  battle.' " 

The  Grand  Master,  however,  unmoved  by  the  general 
joy,  to  the  surprise  of  all  and  to  the  indignation  of 


THE  ISLAND  HOME.  35 

many,  cast  upon  De  Gozon  looks  of  the  severest  dis- 
pleasure, and  demanded  of  him,  in  stern  tones,  what 
defence  he  could  make  for  disobe}7ing  his  plain  orders. 
Without  appearing  to  be  moved  by  the  prayers  of 
the  Knights,  or  to  hear  the  entreaties  of  the  crowd, 
he  commanded  that  De  Gozon  should  be  conveyed  to 
the  dungeon  of  the  palace.  The  unhappy  victor, 
without  word  of  remonstrance  or  complaint,  silently 
and  §«bmissively  obeyed  ;  -and  thus  passed  in  a  moment 
from  the  exuberant  ovation  of  a  popular  triumph  to 
an  accusation  of  dishonor  less  bearable  than  death. 
The  Grand  Master  summoned  his  council,  which  de- 
creed the  degradation  of  De  Gozon  from  his  rank,  the 
removal  of  his  robes  of  knighthood,  and  his  expulsion 
from  the  Hospitallers.  The  humiliated  Knight  was 
summoned  to  the  presence  of  his  chief  to  hear  his 
sentence  declared  in  full  council.  His  companions 
again  interceded  for  his  pardon,  but  he  at  once  pro 
ceeded,  in  obedience  to  the  sentence  of  his  chief, 

"  To  lay  aside  his  robes ;  then  bent 
To  kiss  the  Master's  hand—  and  went" 

The  Grand  Master  recalled  the  repentant  hero,  re- 
stored his  robes,  and  re-admitted  him  to  his  rank,  and 

loaded  him  with  tokens  of  his  favor  and  regard. 

• 

"He  cried,  'Embrace  me,  worthy  son: 

Thou  now  hast  gained  a  fight  more  glorious' 
The  Cross  by  lowliness  irf  won ; 
'Tia  thine,  since  o'er  thyself  victorious.'  " 


36  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

You  ask :  Is  it  true  ?  No ;  it  is  only  a  jnst  and  beau- 
tiful allegory,  representing  the  duty  of  a  true  knight, 
who  should  ever  be  a  triumphant  conqueror  over  evil. 
No  account,  however,  of  the  early  history  of  the  Sea- 
Kiugs  would  be  complete  without  an  insertion  of  this 
legend.  The  Abb6  Vertot,  the  chief  chronicler  of  the 
Knights-Hospitallers,  mentions  that  the  figure  of  a  huge 
dragon  was  sculptured  on  the  walls  of  Rhodes,  and  that 
a  tomb,  said  to  be  that  of  De  Gozon,  bore  the  inscrip- 
tion, "Ci-git  le  vainqueur  de  Dragon" — "Here  lies  the 
conqueror  of  the  Dragon."  Whether  the  legend  was 
made  for  the  inscription,  or  the  inscription  for  the 
legend,  it  is  now  difficult  to  determine. 

Count  Heredia,  a  Knight  of  France,  was  selected 
Grand  Master,  to  succeed  Raymond  Beranger.  He  was 
a  true  Sea- King,  and  aptly  represented  the  duties  de- 
volving upon  the  members  of  his  Order  as  the  great 
naval  champions  and  captains  in  this  period  of  the 
world's  history.  The  Papal  court  had  now  for  seventy 
years  been  located  at  Avignon,  in  France.  Pope 
Gregory  IX.,  A.  D.  1365,  determined  to  return  with  his 
Cardinals  to  Rome.  His  purposed  voyage  happened  to 
coincide  with  the  time  at  which  Count  Heredia  was 
about  to  sail  from  Marseilles  to  assume  the  high  duties 
to  which  he  had^  been  elected,  and  he  volunteered  to 
escort  the  Pope  to  his  Italian  dominions.  Eight  noble 
galleys  from  the  Rhodian  fleet  were  assigned  as  the 


THE  ISLAND  HOME.  37 

Papal  convoy,  under  the  personal  command,  of  Heredia. 
The  noble  Grand  Master,  wearing  a  long  white,  beard, 
and  dressed  in  the  rich  robes  of  knighthood,  surrounded 
by  many  of  his  commanders,  distinguished  for  their 
high  birth  and  martial  mien  and  bearing,  acted  as 
helmsman.  While  crossing  the  Gulf  of  Lyons,  which 
is  always  more  or  less  rough  and  stormy  from  the  col- 
lision of  the  two  streams  from  the  Gulfs  of  Lyons 
and  *Genoa,  the  ship  is  reported  to  have  been  in  some 
danger,  on  which  Heredia  himself  assumed  the  helm, 
and,  trusting  the  safety  of  the  person  of  the  Pope  to  no 
inferior  hand,  piloted  the  ship  himself,  and  brought  her 
in  safety  to  the  port  of  Civita  Vecchia.  Never  before 
or  since  has  vessel  of  Prelate,  Prince,  or  Pope  had  a 
more  distinguished  steersman.  Nor  was  Gregory  IX. 
ungrateful  for  his  services.  In  his  triumphal  entry  into 
Rome,  the  honor  of  bearing  the  Standard  of  the 
Church,  carried  unfurled  before  the  immediate  person 
of  the  Pope,  was  reserved  for  the  Grand  Master 
Heredia,  the  Sea-King  of  the  Mediterranean. 

Soon  after  this  august  ceremony,  Heredia  took  leave 
of  the  Papal  court,  and  proceeded  on  his  own  voy- 
age. On  approaching  the  shores  of  Greece,  he  fell 
in  with  the  fleet  of  Venice.  The  Admiral  saluted  his 
flag  with  the  accustomed  honors,  and  hastened  to  pay 
on  board  his  vessel  the  homage  of  his  personal  re- 
spect. He  further  urged  Heredia,  by  flattering  com- 


38  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

pliments  to  his  prowess  in  war  and  by  considerations  of 
policy,  to  join  him  in  an  attack  he  was  then  meditat- 
ing upon  Patras,  an  important  maritime  city  in  Greece. 
The  Grand  Master  allowed  his  own  private  affairs  to 
yield  to  a  call  of  public  duty,  and  consented  to  the  pro- 
posal. The  combined  fleets  appeared  before  Patras. 
The  town,  only  defended  by  low  ramparts  and  ill- 
constructed  walls,  succumbed  at  ouee  to  their  attack ; 
but  the  Governor,  a  brave  and  gallant  soldier,  retired 
with  his  troops  into  the  citadel,  a  lofty  and  most  impreg- 
nable fortress.  A  siege  was  opened  in  strict  accordance 
with  the  existing  rules  of  war.  The  attack  and  the  de- 
fence were  for  some  days  equally  maintained.  Many 
brave  men  were  slain  on  both  sides.  At  last  a 
breach  was  made  in  the  walls  by  the  besiegers,  and 
Heredia,  impatient  of  the  delay,  headed  the  assail- 
ants, planted  a  ladder,  and  mounting  first,  sword  in 
hand,  without  waiting  for  his  companions,  jumped  down 
from  the  parapet  upon  the  platform  of  the  fort.  Here 
the  Governor  met  him  with  an  equal  courage,  and  a 
regular  single  hand-to-hand  encounter  was  waged  be- 
tween them.  Heredia,  either  stronger  or  more  agile 
than  his  antagonist,  passed  his  sword  through  his 
body  with  a  fatal  thrust.  In  the  meanwhile  his  sol- 
diers, uncertain  of  his  fate,  crowded  over  the  parapet  to 
assist  him,  and,  overcoming  all  resistance,  put  the  garri- 
son to  the  sword. 


THE  ISLAND  HOME.  89 

Heredia,  flattered  by  this  success,  and  won  over 
by  the  specious  professions  and  enthusiastic,  though  not 
disinterested,  praises  of  the  Venetian  Admiral,  resolved 
to  remain  with  him  till  he  had  effected  the  conquest 
of  Greece. 

Corinth  was  the  first  object  of  their  arms.  Its 
siege  was  undertaken ;  but  at  its  very  commence- 
ment, while  reconnoitring  the  forces  of  the  Turks, 
the  Grand  Master  fell  into  an  ambuscade,  and  was 
carried  off  as  a  prisoner  to  the  citadel.  The  Venetian 
Admiral,  with  sincere  friendship,  offered  to  purchase 
his  freedom  by  the  immediate  resignation  of  the  lately 
conquered  city  of  Patras ;  and  on  this  proposal  being 
rejected,  he  made  yet  more  submissive  proposals,  con- 
senting to  pay  a  costly  ransom,  for  which  three  Knights 
should  remain  as  hostages.  Heredia  refused  to  avail 
himself  of  these  terms,  and  used  his  authority  to  pre- 
vent their  acceptance.  "Leave  me,"  said  the  noble 
leader  to  his  companions,  "to  die  in  my  chains.  I 
am  a  useless  old  man,  who  cannot  live  long;  but  you 
are  young,  and  are  bound  to  retain  your  freedom,  and 
to  devote  yourself  to  the  service  of  your  Order."  The 
tears  and  expostulationa  of  his  friends  were  alike  in 
vain ;  he  resignedly  submitted  to  his  fate. 

For  three  years  he  remained  a  prisoner,  until  at 
length  he  was  ransomed  by  monies  raised  from  his 
own  estates,  and  at  last  returned  in  honor  and  safety 


40  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

to  Rhodes  to  exercise  the  functions  of  his  exalted 
office.  These  narratives  of  the  courage  and  spirit  of 
Raymond  Beranger,  of  the  self-sacrifice  and  self-con- 
quest of  De  Gozon,  of  the  conscientious  sense  of  duty 
and  disregard  of  personal  sufferings  of  Heredia,  may 
serve  as  examples  of  the  noble  conduct  which  secured 
for  the  Hospitallers  the  peaceful  possession  of  their 
island  Home,  and  which  obtained  the  approval,  re- 
spect, and  grateful  admiration  of  Christendom  for  the 
bold  and  adventurous  "Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediter- 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MILITABY  EXPLOITS. 

'Bong  Arthur  saw,  with  startled  eye, 
The  flower  of  clivalry  march  by, 
The  bulwark  of  the  Christian  creed, 
The  kingdom's  shield  in  hour  of  need." 

SCOTT,  Bridal  of  Triemunn. 

THE  "  Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean  "  at  the  close 
of  the  thirteenth  century  were  in  a  very  peculiar  posi- 
tion. Their  Order  formed  a  powerful  military  con- 
federacy, dispersed  among  and  interlaced  with  all 
European  countries,  so  that  at  this  time  they  counted 
aa  substantial  factors  in  the  game  of  politics.  Their 
alliance  was  sought  by  rival  popes,  jealous  sovereigns, 
and  bellicose  republics.  While  devoted  to  their  special 
task  of  maintaining  against  all  adversaries  a  free  and 
open  ocean  for  Christian  traffic,  they  were  also  re- 
quired to  take  part  in  royal  quarrels,  dynastic  com- 
plications, and  weighty  European  enterprises.  The 
chief  feature  of  this  particular  era  was  the  remarkable 
reaction  from  the  fond  but  delusive  hopes  entertained 
by  the  Crusaders  of  subduing  Eastern  climes  to  an 

41 


42  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

obedience  to  the  Cross.  The  followers  of  Mohammed 
had  now,  in  their  turn,  become  the  invaders,  and  the 
rulers  and  populations  of  the  East  were  inspired  with 
a  mad  desire  to  enforce  on  Christendom  a  universal 
acceptance  of  the  Koran  and  the  Crescent.  The  Otto- 
man Turks,  under  their  famous  Sultan  Bajazet  (sur- 
named  Yilderim,  or  Lightning,  from  the  celerity  of 
his  military  movements),  were  the  foremost  promoters 
of  these  retaliatory  proceedings.  Bajazet,  the  fourth 
sovereign  in  succession  from  Othman,  the  founder  of 
his  dynasty,  had  pursued  a  long  career  of  unchecked 
victory.  Having  wrested  province  after  province  from 
the  ruler  of  the  Byzantine  Empire  at  Constantinople, 
he  determined,  at  this  time,  to  invade  Hungary,  and 
publicly  boasted,  in  his  wild  dream  of  a  universal 
empire,  that  he  would  capture  Buda,  march  from  thence 
to  Italy,  depose  the  Pope,  subordinate  Rome  to  Mecca, 
and  feed  his  horse  with  oats  on  the  very  altar  of  St. 
Peter's. 

The  Janizzaries  were  the,  celebrated  troops  with 
which  the  great  Ottoman  sultans  of  the  thirteenth 
and  fourteenth  centuries  obtained  their  numerous  vic- 
tories. Their  cruel  custom  was  to  kill  the  grown-up 
men  in  the  population  of  the  Christian  countries  they 
conquered,  but  to  reserve  the  male  children,  that  they 
might  be  educated  as  Mohammedans,  and  be  trained  in 
the  hardiness  and  discipline  necessary  for  the  perfecting 


MILJTABY   EXPLOITS  43 

of  the  soldier.  Cut  off  from  all  ties  of  country  and 
kin, —  rewarded  with  high  pay,  social  privileges,  and 
ample  opportunities  of  gratifying  their  personal  ambi- 
tion,—  encouraged  to  the  indulgence  of  all  worldly, 
sensual,  and  violent  passions, —  these  troops  formed  a 
military  brotherhood  thoroughly  adapted  to  become 
the  unthinking  instruments  of  their  master's  will,  the 
more  remorseless  executioners  of  imperial  despotism 
or  of  unrelenting  fanaticism.  They  were  called  Janiz- 
zaries,  from  two  Turkish  words — Yeni  Tscheri,  or 
new  soldiers.  The  name  was  given  them  at  their 
first  institution  by  a  famous  Dervish,  or  Mohammedan 
prophet,  who,  standing  in  the  front  of  their  ranks, 
stretched  the  sleeve  of  his  official  dress  over  the  head 
of  the  foremost  soldier,  and  pronounced  his  benedic- 
tion, or  prediction  of  their  destiny,  in  these  words: 
"Let  them  be  called  Janizzaries " — Yeni  Tscheri. 
"May  their  countenance  be  ever  bright!  their  hand 
victorious!  their  sword  keen !  May  their  spear  always 
hang  over  the  heads  of  their  enemies;  and,  wheresoever 
they  go,  may  they  always  return  with  a  white*  face!" 

*  ""\Yhite"  and  "black"  face  are  common  proverbial  expressions  of  praise 
or  reproach.  "Hie  nrjer  est,  hunc  tu,  Romane,  ca veto. "—//or.  Sat.  i.  4. 
See  Creasy 's  Ottoman  Empire,  vol.  i.,  p.  21.  London:  1858. 

These  troops  at  last  assumed  the  authority  of  a  Praetorian  Guard,  and  in- 
terfered with  the  dignity  and  appointments  of  the  Supreme  Pailer  of  tho 
Ottoman  Porte.  Sultan  Mahmoud,  June  16,  182G,  caused  a  massacre  to  be 
made  of  15,000  of  then-  number  at  Constantinople.  They  were  finally  abol- 
ished by  an  Imperial  firman  in  1836.  Cf.  "Janizzary,"  in  Townsend's 
Manual  of  Dates. 


44  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KINGS. 

The  uniform  of  these  troops  commemorated  the  incident 
connected  with  their  origin.  They  wore  a  cap  of  white 
felt,  like  that  of  a  Dervish,  with  a  stripe  of  wool  hang- 
ing down  behind,  to  represent  the  sleeve  which  had 
been  placed  on  their  captain's  head.  They  were  armed 
with  iron  maces,  with  which  they  made  grievous  car- 
nage among  their  enemies.  The  Sea-Kings  of  the 
Mediterranean  were  now  to  measure  their  strength 
against  these  formidable  opponents.  The  ancient  chiv- 
alry was  now  to  meet  in  mortal  fray  with  this  newly- 
created  soldiery  of  the  Paynim. 

In  1394  A.  D.,  Pope  Boniface  IX.,  deeply  impressed 
with  a  conviction  of  the  dangers  that  threatened  Chris- 
tendom, invited  all  the  princes  of  Europe  to  a  combined 
effort  to  resist  the  threatened  attack  of  Bajazet  upon 
the  kingdom  of  Hungary.  A  Christian  league  was 
formed,  by  which  Charles  VI.  of  France,  Philip  Duke 
of  Burgundy,  the  Byzantine  Emperor,  the  republics 
of  Venice  and  Genoa,  and  the  Knights  of  St.  John, 
united  to  withstand  the  encroachments  of  the  Ottoman. 
Not  one  of  the  Crusades  was  undertaken  with  an  army 
more  efficient  in  numbers,  equipment,  or  warlike  deter- 
mination. The  only  fault  was  a  too  confident  assurance 
of  strength  and  of  certain  success.  The  soldiery  of 
France,  led  by  the  young  and  brilliant  Count  de  Nev- 
ers,  the  son  and  heir  of  the  Duke  of  Burgundy,  were  so 
full  of  trust  in  themselves  and  their  achievements,  that 


MILITARY   EXPLOITS.  45 

they  boasted,   "  If  the  sky  should  fall,  they  would  hold 
it  up  with  their  lances." 

The  two  mighty  hosts  met  in  mortal  conflict  on  the 
24th  of  September,  A.  D.  1396,  at  Nicopolis,  on  the 
Danube.  The  Count  de  Nevers  and  his  generals 
were  at  their  midday  meal,  when  the  tidings  reached 
them  of  the  approach  of  the  Ottoman  army.  The 
younger  officers,  with  the  men-at-arms,  clamored  with 
hot  h»Ste  and  with  the  impatience  of  an  ill-regulated  zeal, 
to  be  led  immediately  against  their  foes.  In  vain  the 
soldier-like  skill  of  Sigismund,  and  the  experience  of  the 
elder  commanders,  urged  the  adoption  of  scientific  and 
prudential  operations.  The  splendidly-equipped  French 
cavalry  rushed  impetuously  into  the  field.  Their  fu- 
rious charge  scattered,  as  chaff  before  the  wind,  the 
worthless  troops  always  placed  in  the  van  by  the  tactics 
of  Bajazet;  but  behind  them  the  French  captains 
met  more  worthy  foemen  in  a  huge  phalanx  of  Janiz- 
zaries,  who  presented,  in  the  serried  ranks  of  their  mas- 
sive battalions,  a  firm  and  apparently  impregnable  bar- 
rier to  their  advance.  Nevers  and  his  Knights  rode 
at  once,  in  indiscriminate  haste,  amidst  the  ranks  of 
these  brave  soldiers.  A  desperate  conflict  ensued. 
The  iron  maces  of  the  Janizzaries  rattled  with  too  fatal 
effect  on  the  mailed  armor  of  their  opponents,  while  the 
swords  and  charges  of  the  Knights  did  terrible  exe- 
cution ;  until  at  last  this  famous  Eastern  infantry,  by 


46  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

whom  defeat  had  hitherto  been  unknown,  broke  their 
ranks,  and  fled  in  terror  from  the  contest. 

Timely  succor  was  at  hand.  The  Sultan,  like  an 
accomplished  general,  had  left  nothing  to  chance. 
Equally  prepared  for  either  alternative  of  defeat  or 
victory,  he  had  drawn  up  his  magnificent  Eastern  caval- 
ry, the  very  strength  and  flower  of  his  army,  in  support 
of  the  Janizzaries ;  and  this  routed  infantry  speedily 
found,  behind  these  horsemen,  ready  shelter  and  protec- 
tion. Flushed  by  his  second  success,  and  stimulated  to 
renewed  exertions  by  the  hope  of  a  complete  conquest, 
the  Count  Nevers.  and  his  Knights  dashed,  with  unhesi- 
tating confidence  and  undiminished  vigor,  upon  this 
third  army  of  the  enemy,  and,  by  the  mad  energy 
of  their  onset,  put  to  flight  these  choicest  troops  fight- 
ing under  the  banner  of  the  Infidel.  The  strength, 
however,  of  man  and  horse  had  its  limits;  and  when, 
on  the  repulse  of  this  third  array,  the  bold  warriors 
of  Count  Nevers  found  yet  a  fourth  army  in  reserve, 
under  the  immediate  command  of  the  Sultan  himself, 
drawn  up  with  marshalled  rank,  unbroken  courage,  and 
yet  larger  numbers,  they  were  compelled  to  confess  that 
the  meteor  of  conquest  had  allured  them  too  far.  Sep- 
arated from  their  own  friends,  and  incapable,  from 
sheer  exhaustion,  of  making  further  exertions,  both 
soldiers  and  steeds  were  unable  to  withstand  the  attack 
of  these  fresh  legions. 


MILITARY  EXPLOITS.  47 

"  Anon  the  troop 

Of  horsemen,  and  the  din  of  multitudes 
Moving  to  mortal  conflict,  rang  around. 
The  battle  song,  the  clang  of  sword  and  shield, 
"War-cries  and  tumult,  strife,  and  hate,  and  rage, 
Blasphemous  prayer,  confusion,  agony, 
Rout,  and  pursuit,  and  death,  and  over  all 
The  shout  of  victory."  * 

This  fourth  mortal  combat  did  not  last  long.  Baj- 
azet  gained  an  easy  triumph  over  a  diminished,  disor 
ganized,"and  dispirited  foe.  At  this  concluding  crisis 
of  the  battle  the  Mediterranean  Knights,  under  their 
brave  Grand  Master,  Philibert  de  Naillac,  greatly  dis- 
tinguished themselves.  Supported  by  some  German 
battalions,  which  had  not  hitherto  taken  part  in  the  en- 
gagment,  they  stood  firm,  and  sustained,  with  a  resolu- 
tion worthy  of  their  fame,  the  onset  of  the  victorious 
squadron  of  the  Sultan.  Their  assailants,  as  it  hap- 
pened, were  the  regiments  of  Janazzaries,  who  had 
sallied,  and  now  exerted  themselves  in  the  presence 
of  their  sovereign  to  wipe  away  the  disgrace  of  their 
earlier  repulse.  In  vain  they  renewed  their  attack. 
The  mailed  warriors  of  Rhodes  rode  into  their  ranks, 
threw  them  into  confusion,  and  compelled  them  to 
retreat,  so  that  there  appeared  to  be  a  chance  of  restor- 
ing the  fortunes  of  the  day.  At  this  critical  moment 
the  Prince  of  Servia,  a  faithful  alley  of  Bajazet,  rushed 

•  Southey,  Don  Roderick. 


48  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

to  the  rescue  of  the  Janizzaries  with  a  body  of  5,000 
fresh  horsemen.  This  opportune  reinforcement  finally 
decided  the  victory,  and  extinguished  the  last  hope 
of  the  Christian  army.  A  general  sauve  qui  peut* 
became  the  order  of  the  day.  The  fight  was  turned' 
into  a  flight,  though  comparatively  few  escaped  so  expe- 
ditious and  so  merciless  an  enemy.  Among  this  more 
fortunate  number  was  the  gallant  Philibert  de  Naillac, 
who  by  his  courage  and  presence  of  mind  secured 
the  safety  of  the  royal  Sigismund  and  himself.  They 
succeeded,  under  the  friendly  shadows  of  the  declining 
day,  in  reaching  the  Danube,  and,  securing  a  small 
boat,  threaded  their  dangerous  and  doleful  way  to 
the  rendezvous  of  the  fleet.  The  King  returned  with 
the  Grand  Master  to  Rhodes,  and  became  for  a  time  an 
honored  guest  in  the  home  of  the  Sea-Kings.  Thus 
ended  this  momentous  collision  of  the  forces  of  the 
Eastern  and  Western  world  in  the  important  battle 
of  Nicopolis.  If  it  cannot  be  included  among  the  de- 
cisive battles  of  the  world,  it  marks  the  halting-point  of 
Ottoman  ambition.  The  victory  was  so  dearly  pur- 
chased, that  half-a-century  elapsed  before  a  sultan  again 
dared  to  meet  in  arms  the  chivalry  of  the  West. 

Bajazet,  in  a  spirit  of  barbarian  ferocity  and  of  out- 
raged pride,  treated  his  prisoners  with  the  utmost  cruel- 

*  Let  every  one  save  himself  who  can. 


MILITARY  EXPLOITS.  49 

ty.  "  This  has  been,"  said  he,  "  a  bloody  victory  for 
my  people ;  they  shall  be  revenged.  Let  the  Christian 
clogs  prepare  to  die."  On  the  morrow  after  the  battle, 
the  sun  arose  upon  a  fearful  sight.  The  Sultan  had  his 
vast  army  drawn  up  in  a  line,  of  which  he,  surrounded 
by  his  viziers,  generals,  and  councillors,  occupied  the 
center,  and  then  ordered  the  multitude  of  his  prisoners 
to  be  brought  before  him.*  The  procession  was  led 
by  thfree  hundred  Christian  Knights,  naked  to  their 
shirts,  their  hands  tied  behind  them,  and  with  halters 
round  their  necks.  From  these,  drawn  up  in  a  triple 
rank,  he  commanded,  with  the  utmost  refinement  of 
cruelty,  the  Count  Nevers  to  make  choice  at  his  own 
option  of  twenty-four  to  be  the  companions  of  his 
own  imprisonment  and  sad  fortunes.  The  others  of 
that  brave  and  noble  company  were  ordered  to  instant 
execution.  Remonstrance,  entreaties,  bribes,  guerdons 
of  rich  ransom,  were  offered  in  vain.  The  despot  had 
spoken  his  will.  That  heroic  band  marched  onward 
to  their  doom  with  secret  prayer,  unflinching  counte- 
nance, and  firm  step,  with  a  conscientious  sense  of  duty 
performed  and  of  honor  won,  with 

"  stony  air 
Of  mixed  defiance  and  despair."  f 

Scarcely  had  they  passed  the  imperial  presence,  when 
at  a  preconcerted  signal,  given  by  the  Sultan  himself, 

•  Geeasy's  Ottoman  Turks,  vol.  I,  p.  62.  t  Giaour. 

4 


50  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

they  were  set  upon  by  the  troops,  and  hewn  to  pieces  in 
om;  indistinguishable  slaughter.  The  long  files  of  the 
common  soldiery  followed  in  mournful  silence,  and  were 
all  similarly  cut  down  and  destroyed  by  the  scimitars 
and  bowstrings  of  the  Turkish  executioners  or  by  the 
.  ponderous  maces  of  the  Janizzaries.*  No  shriek  of 
pain,  nor  cry  for  mercy,  nor  shout  of  execration  moved 
the  soul,  nor  evoked  the  pity  of  the  conqueror.  For 
five  long  hours  did  Bajazet  sit  upon  his  charger,  amidst 
the  pomp  of  his  Eastern  camp,  and  witness  with  obdu- 
rate heart,  inexorable  eye,  and  unmoved  lip,  the  relent- 
less outpouring  of  that  deluge  of  human  blood  — 

"  And  where  hia  frown  of  hatred  darkly  feD, 
Hope  withering  fled  and  Mercy  righed  farewell"  t 

He  only  relented  of  his  sanguinary  mood,  when  ap- 
pealed to  by  some  of  his  courtiers,  on  no  worthier  or 
nobler  motive  than  that,  "it  was  unprofitable  to  slay 
men  who  might  be  sold  for  slaves,  or  reserved  for 
ransom."  Count  Nevers  and  his  twenty-four  rescued 
companions  were  detained  at  the  court  of  Bajazet  for 
two  years,  and  at  the  expiration  of  that  time  were 
dismissed,  in  a  fit  of  pride  or  of  caprice,  with  the  taunt- 
ing command  "that  they  should  go  and  report  to 
France,  Burgundy,  and  Europe  the  irresistible  superior- 
ity of  the  Sultan." 

•  Creaks  Ottoman  Turks,  voL  L,  p.  65.  t  Cortair. 


MILITARY   EXPLOITS.  51 

The  pride  of  Bajazet  was  soon  to  be  humbled.  Tho 
avenger  was  already  on  his  path.  The  retribution  did 
not  come  from  any  of  the  sovereigns  whose  rights  he 
had  invaded,  nor  from  any  prowess  of  insulted  Chris- 
tendom. It  was,  however,  both  sure  and  swift.  An- 
other mighty  conqueror,  like  to  himself  in  the  multitude 
of  his  hosts,  the  number  of  his  victories,  the  morciloss- 
ness  of  his  cruelty,  and  in  the  insatiableness  of  his 
ambition,  was  to  be  the  instrument  of  his  ruin.  Ti- 
mour,  or  Tamerlane,  born  only  to  the  patrimony  of  a 
petty  chieftainship,  had,  by  the  wisdom  of  his  policy 
and  the  power  of  his  arm,  created  for  himself  an  empire 
extensive  as  that  of  Bajazet.  At  this  time  he  had 
placed  upon  his  own  head,  by  the  right  of  conquest, 
the  crowns  of  twenty-seven  kings,  and  was  sovereign 
of  Persia,  India,  and  Tartary,  so  that  the  rich  towns 
of  the  first,  the  vast  treasures  of  the  second,  from  the 
Indus  to  the  Ganges,  and  the  thick  population  of  the 
third,  contributed  to  support  his  armies,  and  maintain 
his  sway.  Timour  held,  with  barbaric  insolence,  as  an 
article  of  his  creed,  "  That  as  t^ere  was  but  one  God 
who  ruled  in  heaven,  so  there  ought  to  be  only  one 
sovereign  on  earth,  and  that  Timour  was  he."  The 
regions  which  owned  the  sceptre  of  this  great  con- 
queror were  now  conterminous  with  those  ruled  by 
Bajazet,  and  "as  Timour  was  impatient  of  an  equal, 
and  Bajazet  was  ignorant  of  a  superior,"*  a  small 

*  Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall  of  Roman  Empire,  chap.  (15. 


52  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

pretext  sufficed  to  evoke  hostilities  between  them. 
Each  of  these  mighty  chieftains  was  fully  conscious 
of  the  power  of  his  rival,  and  made  the  greatest  efforts 
in  anticipation  of  the  coming  contest  for  the  supreme 
government  of  the  Eastern  world.  Bajazet  collected  an 
army  of  400,000  men,  of  whom  40,000  were  his  formida- 
ble battalions  of  Janizzaries,  20,000  European  mercena- 
ries, armed  men  in  mail  with  swords  and  halberdiers, 
and  the  remainder  troops,  chiefly  cavalry,  contributed 
by  the  nations  subject  to  his  rule.  Timour  mustered  a 
yet  more  numerous  host,  and  was  attended  by  a  splen- 
did line  of  elephants,  with  their  gilded  howdahs,  which 
were,  however,  brought  rather  as  tokens  of  his  imperial 
estate  and  power  than  as  useful  auxiliaries  in  the  battle. 
The  first  omens  of  success  were  with  Timour.  Early 
in  the  spring  of  1402  A.  D.  he  obtained  possession,  after 
a  protracted  siege,  of  the  strong  fortress  of  Sivas  in 
Cappadocia.  The  cruelties  of  Timour  on  this  occasion 
equaled  anything  recorded  of  h'is  rival.  Enraged  at  the 
vigorous  opposition  offered  him,  he  put  to  death  Or- 
togul,  the  favorite  son, of  Bajazet,  by  whom  the  defence 
of  the  fortress  had  been  so  gallantly  conducted.  His 
fiercest  hatred  was  reserved  for  the  four  thousand 
Christian  soldiers  who  formed  a  part  of  the  garrison. 
Their  heads  were  tied  down  with  cords  to  the  thighs, 
so  as  to  bring  the  face  between  the  legs  to  look  towards 
the  back.  Bound  in  this  agonizing  posture,  they  were 


MILITARY  EXPLOITS.  53 

thrown  alive  into  graves,  not  filled  up,  but  planked 
over,  in  order  that  the  torture  of  the  victims  might  be 
protracted  as  long  as  possible.* 

"Man,  whose  heav'n-erected  face 

The  smiles  of  love  adorn; 
Man's  inhumanity  to  man 
Makes  countless  thousands  mourn."  t 

What  improvements  have  been  effected  in  our  hap- 
pier days,  in  which,  under  the  ameliorating  influences 
of  Christianity,  these  cruelties,  almost  too  horrible  to  be 
told,  have  been  superseded  by  the  loving  ministrations 
of  the  Red  Cross  Knights,  and  by  the  softened  code 
of  war  universally  acknowledged,  which  requires  every 
kindness  and  consideration  to  be  shown  to  a  fallen  foe ! 

The  tidings  of  the  death  of  his  favorite  son,  and 
of  these  indignities  to  his  troops,  filled  Bajazet  with 
the  profoundest  grief,  and  stimulated,  beyond  all 
bounds,  his  thirst  for  vengeance.  The  reader  will 
remember  how  Hotspur  proposes  to  keep  alive  the 
hatred  of  Henry  IV. :  — 

"I'll  have  a  starling  shall  be  taught  to  speak 
Kothing  but  Mortimer,  and  give  it  him 
To  keep  his  anger  still  in  motion."  J 

So,  it  is  said,  the  Sultan  Bajazet,  on  his  march  one 
morning,  was  struck  with  the  tuneful  voice  of  a 

»  Creasy's  Ottoman  Empire,  voL  1.,  p.  74.    Jacob.  Ottoman  Empire,  p.  31 8. 

t  Burns. 

t  King  Henry  IV, ,  Act  L,  BO.  5. 


54  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

shepherd-boy  singing  in  the  field ;  and  bade  him  to  be 
enlisted  in  his  army,  that  he  might  day  by  day  teach 
him  to  nurse  his  wrath,  by  singing, — 

"  Leave  not  Sivas  to  be  taken, 
And  thy  son  to  die  forsaken."  * 

The  two  great  Eastern  potentates  met  at  last  in 
fatal  conflict,  on  Friday,  the  28th  day  of  July.  Amidst 
the  heat  of  that  midsummer's  day  was  fought  the 
great  battle  of  Angora,  in  which,  in  spite  of  the 
exertions  of  Bajazet  (and  never  had  he  displayed  to 
more  advantage  his  skill  as  a  leader,  or  his  courage  as 
a  warrior),  the  Emperor  Timour  gained  a  complete  and 
memorable  victory. 

Bajazet  was  now  to  drink  to  the  dregs  the  cup  of 
humiliation.  He  was  compelled  to  endure  the  very 
acme  of  Eastern  disgrace,  and  to  witness  his  wives 
waiting  in  menial  service  at  the  feasts  and  table  of 
the  conqueror;  and  was  made  himself  a  public  spectacle 
of  contumely  to  his  own  subjects  and  to  his  foes.  The 
story  of  his  treatment  is  thus  told :"  Timour  summoned 
him  before  his  throne,  and  said  to  him,  "  What  wouldst 
thou  have  done  to  me,  if  it  had  been  my  fortune  to  have 
been  placed  in  thy  power,  as  thou  art  in  mine?" 
Bajazet  replied,  "I  would  have  enclosed  thee  in  a 
cage  of  iron,  and  have  carried  thee  up  and  down  in  my 

*  Creasy*  s  Ottoman  Empire,  vdi  L,  p.  75. 


MILITARY  EXPLOITS.  55 

kingdom."  "  Even  so,"  said  the  Emperor,  "  it  shall  be 
done  to  thee."  And  so  he  caused  him  to  be  shackled 
in  fetters  of  gold,  and  to  be  shut  up  in  an  iron  cage  of 
lattice-work,  in  such  sort  that  he  might  everywhere  be. 
seen;  and  so  he  was  carried,  wherever  Timour  went, 
that  he  might  be  scoffed  at  and  derided  by  his  own 
people.* 

Bajazet  did  not  long  survive  these  disgraces.  His 
proud^spirit  succumbed,  and  he  died  before  the  close  of 
the  year  A.  D.  1402. 

Some  doubt  has  been  expressed  about  the  truth 
of  this  story  of  the  cage  of  Bajazet;  but  the  evidence 
of  history  tends  to  confirm  the  fact.  The  most  probable 
version  is,  that  Bajazet  attempted  an  escape,  and  thus 
provoked  a  heavier  restraint ;  and  that  an  iron  cage, 
conveyed  on  a  wagon,  was  resorted  to,  "not  as  a 
wanton  insult,  but  as  a  rigorous  precaution,"  f  in  the 
frequent  marches  of  his  conqueror. 

Timour,  after  the  battle  of  Angora,  progressed,  with 
the  pomp  of  a  military  triumph,  through  Asia  Minor, 
and  other  portions  of  the  territories  wrested  from 
Bajazet,  until  he  reached  the  fortress  of  Smyrna. 
Here  he  came,  in  the  plenitude  of  his  power,  in  direct 
collision  with  tfce  "Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean." 

*  Du  Bee's  History  of  Jerusalem.    London,  1592.    P.  127.    Knolle's  IR* 
tory  of  the  Turks.    1610.    P.  220. 
t  Gibbon's  Decline  and  Fall,  chap.  65. 


56  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

They  had  gone  voluntarily,  under  a  sense  of  duty,  in 
accordance  with  their  engagements  to  pope  and  prince, 
to  assist  in  the  wars  designed  for  the  resisting  the 
encroachments  of  Bajazet.  But  now  Timour  himself 
sought  them  out,  in  his  boasted  determination  not  only 
to  expel  the  European  from  the  soil  of  Asia,  but  to  es- 
tablish, in  his  own  majestic  person,  an  universal  sover- 
eignty. Smyrna  was  a  strong  fortress,  defended  wilh 
bastions,  redoubts,  towers,  bulwarks,  fosses,  trenches, 
and  all  the  accessories  of  a  strong  military  post  known 
to  the  science  of  that  period.  It  was,  above  all,  held 
by  brave  men,  impressed  with  a  sense  of  their  responsi- 
bilities as  the  foremost  sentinels  of  Christendom,  and 
who  knew  how  to  die,  but  not  to  yield  either  to 
empty  menaces  or  to  the  actual  onset  of  their  foes. 
This  fortress  was  for  many  reasons  a  prize  much  coveted 
by  the  conqueror.  It  would  give  him  what  his  ambi- 
tion most  desired,  a  port  on  the  Great  Sea ;  and  its 
harbor  contained  a  fleet  which,  if  once  his,  might  ma- 
terially assist  him  in  his  proposed  assaults  on  Rhodes, 
Venice,  and  Constantinople.  In  the  most  charming 
period  of  the  year  in  the  Mediterranean,  when  the 
most  luxurious  foliage,  the  choicest  variety  of  flowers, 
the  richest  fertility,  the  balmiest  winds,  made  all  nature 
gay,  on  the  second  day  of  December,  A.  D.  1402,  Ti- 
mour appeared  before  the  fortress.  He  at  once,  ac- 
cording to  his  custom,  summoned  the  governor  to 


MILITARY  EXPLOITS.  57 

an  immediate  surrender.  Chevelier  William  de  Mine, 
a  bold  and  spirited  Sea-King,  to  whom  the  custody  of 
the  fortress  was  entrusted,  entirety  refused  to  listen  to 
his  proposal.  On  this  answer  being  known,  Timour 
gave  the  governor,  as  he  was  wont,  three  days  for  his 
decision.  On  the  first  day  he  hoisted  a  white  flag  over 
his  imperial  tent,  intimating  his  willingness  to  spare 
the  lives  of  all,  if  they  would  yield  at  once  to  his 
mercy:"  On  the  second  day  he  raised  a  red  flag,  an- 
nouncing his  willingness  to  spare  the  inhabitants,  but 
to  slaythe  garrison.  On  the  third  day  he  unfurled  a 
black  flag,  declaring  his  determination  to  kill  without 
distinction  every  soul  in  the  fortress.  On  the  morning 
of  the  fourth  day,  Timour  ordered  an  immediate  as- 
sault. His  troops  commenced  the  attack  by  endeavor- 
ing to  fill  up  the  moats  and  ditches  with  fascines  and 
gabions,  and  to  scale  the  ramparts  with  their  ladders, 
while  their  archers  shot  incessantly  at  the  defenders 
upon  the  walls.  The  besieged  in  their  turn  -poured 
upon  their  foes  every  kind  of  missile  which  the  art  of 
war  had  then  adopted, —  boiling  oil,  seething  pitch, 
huge  stones, — 

"  So  that  beneath  the  burning  wall 
In  reeking  heaps  th'  assailants  falL"  * 

The  Knights,  too,  with  their  men-at-arms,  made  spirited 
*  Bowies'  Siege  of  Acre. 


58  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

and  unexpected  sorties,  and  drove  back  the  Tartars 
in  confusion  to  their  encampments.  The  experience  of 
this  failure  in  his  first  attack  taught  Timour  that  he 
was  now  in  the  presence  of  men  who  were  not  af- 
frighted at  the  mere  shadow  of  his  name,  and  against 
whom  the  dashing,  off-hand  assault  which  he  had  so 
often  adopted  with  success,  would  not  avail.  Bold  and 
resolute  as  were  his  soldiers,  they  had  now  met  their 
equals,  and  could  not  hope  for  an  easy  victory  against 
the  living  ramparts  of  undaunted  warriors  opposed  to 
them.  Timour  resolved  on  another  expedient.  He 
caused  several  huge  wooden  towers  to  be  made  and 
placed  on  large  wooden  wheels  or  rollers.  Each  tower 
was  constructed  to  hold  two  hundred  men,  and  was 
divided  into  three  stories  or  compartments.  The  low- 
est or  basement  floor  was  filled  with  diggers  and 
miners,  who  with  their  tools  worked  under  the  safe  pro- 
tection of  the  tower,  and  sapped  the  walls.  The  upper 
story  was  filled  with  archers  to  keep  the  beseiged  at 
a  distance  from  the  walls,  while  the  middle  compart- 
ment was  reserved  for  the  heavy  armed  soldiers,  who, 
by  means  of  a  drawbridge  constructed  to  let  down  from 
the  machine  upon  the  walls,  attacked  the  Knights  in 
hand-to-hand  conflicts,  and  endeavored  to  gain  the  ram- 
parts. This  device  of  Timour  was  eventually  success- 
ful. The  miners  in  the  lower  compartment  did  the 


MILITAEY  EXPLOITS.  59 

most  mischief.  Protected  by  their  testudo  f  they  soon 
made  gaps  in  the  masonry  of  the  walls,  and,  supporting 
these  openings  for  a  time  with  pieces  of  timber,  they 
coated  the  temporary  props  with  naptha,  pitch,  and 
other  inflammable  materials,  and,  at  a  concerted  signal, 
set  them  on  fire,  when  the  supports  quickly  gave  way 
and  the  towers  fell  to  the  earth  with  a  crash.  With 
shou^  of  exultation  at  their  success,  the  assailants 
poured  through  the  breaches,  and,  overcoming  by  their 
numbers  every  obstacle,  succeeded,  after  a  stubborn 
and  sanguinary  contest,  in  obtaining  possession  of  the 
fortress.  The  Knights  paid  in  their  deaths  the  ex- 
pected penalty  of  resistance  ;  and  the  barbarous  con- 
queror, in  accordance  with  custom,  made  a  pyramid 
of  their  heads. 

This  siege  of  Smyrna  was  the  last  of  the  victories 
of  Timonr.  At  its  conclusion  he  returned,  with  the 
slow  steps  of  a  royal  progress,  to  Samarcand,  his  fa- 

*  Testudo,  a  tortoise.  A  warlike  engine,  roofed  over  with  boards,  and 
sometimes  with  raw  hides,  under  which,  as  a  pent-house,  the  besiegers  of 
towns  got  up  close  to  walls.  It  was  sometimes  a  covering  made  by  the  sol- 
diers with  their  shields.  Virgil,  JSneid,  H.. ,  441  st  line,  alludes  to  this  use  of 
the  shields  of  the  soldiers  at  the  siege  of  Troy: — 

" Danaosque  ad  tecta  ruentes 

Cernimus,  obsessumque  acta  testudine  limen." 

"We  see  the  Greeks  rushing  forward  to  the  palace,  and  the  portico  be- 
sieged by  then:  completed  testudo."  Livy  gives  an  account  of  this  military 
formation,  Book  XLIV.,  c.  9. 


60  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

vorite  capital,  and  there  died  within  the  space  of  two 
years,  A.  D.  1404 ;  and  Europe  was  relieved  of  any 
further  fear  of  his  contemplated  Western  conquests. 

The  Grand  Master  of  Rhodes,  the  gallant  Philibert 
de  Naillac,  did  his  best  to  repair  the  loss  of  the  strong 
fortress  of  Smyrna.  On  the  death  of  Timour,  he  sum- 
moned his  captains,  and  fitted  out  a  fleet  which  success- 
ful ly  wrested  from  the  Turks  the  fortress  of  Halicar- 
nassus,  on  the  mainland  in  Asia  Minor.  This  he 
fortified  more  strongly,  and  it  proved  henceforth  to  be  a 
safe  harbor  for  the  vessels  of  the  Sea-Kings  in  their 
frequent  encounters  for  naval  supremacy.  It  served 
another  and  unlooked-for  purpose,  and  became  a  verita- 
ble city  of  refuge  for  all  who  fled  from  the  tyranny 
of  their  Moslem  Masters.  The  unfortunate  Christian 
slave  who  could  effect  his  escape  from  the  dungeon, 
galley,  or  mine,  ever  found  within  the  walls  of  this 
fortress  a  ready  welcome  and  sure  protection.  As  a 
means  of  assisting  these  Christian  bondsmen  in  their 
flight,  the  garrison  of  this  citadel  kept  a  breed  of  dogs, 
whom  they  trained  to  go  out  and  seek  for  those  who 
might  have  sunk  exhausted  in  the  mountains.  The 
-instinct  of  these  clogs  was  extraordinary.  A  story  is 
told  of  one  which,  by  his  marvellous  sagacity,  saved  the 
life  of  a  Christian  slave.  The  poor  fellow,  escaping 
from  the  hands  of  his  master,  threw  himself  into  an  old 
disused  well,  from  which  he  could  not  lift  himself  on 


MILITARY  EXPLOITS.  61 

account  of  his  bruised  and  broken  limbs.  The  well 
was  dry,  but  the  man  would  have  died  of  hunger  had 
not  a  noble  dog  from  the  fortress  brought  him  in  his 
mouth  food  given  him  for  his  own  support,  and  dropped 
it  from  his  mouth  into  the  well.  At  length  it  was 
observed  that  the  dog  was  growing  thinner  every  day; 
and  his  continued  excursions  always  in  one  and  the 
same^lirection,  at  the  same  hour  every  day,  induced  the 
soldiers  to  watch  his  movements,  whereby  the  truth 
was  discovered,  and  the  slave  was  rescued. 

We  have  illustrated  the  "  Sea-Kings  "  in  their  wars. 
None  of  them,  to  their  credit  be  it  spoken,  were  of  their 
own  seeking.  In  accordance  with  the  requirements 
of  the  times,  and  in  obedience  to  their  vows,  they  were 
called  to  take  part  in  the  great  battle  of  Nicopolis,  in 
repelling  the  encroachments  and  in  resisting  the  am- 
bitious desgins  of  the  Ottoman  Turks;  and  although 
unsuccessful  on  that  day  so  disastrous  to  Western  chiv- 
alry, they  personally  did  their  duty,  and  distinguished 
themselves  by  their  bold  contest  with  the  Janizzaries,— 
troops  which  had  never  before  known  repulse  on  the 
battle-field.  Though  defeated  by  the  multitudinous 
hordes  of  Timour,  yet,  in  their  contest  with  his  bat- 
talions, they  nobly  resigned  their  fortress  only  with 
their  lives.  They  thus,  in  both  their  great  wars,  dis- 
charged well  the  perilous  services  incumbent  on  them 
aa  the  foremost  sentinels  of  the  Cross  in  Europe.  For 


62  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

the  next  eighty  years  they  met  with  no  molestation 
or  annoyance,  and  engaged  in  no  important  internation- 
al contest,  either  by  sea  or  by  land.  They  went  on  the 
even  tenor  of  their  way  as  protectors  of  the  commerce, 
defenders  of  the  rights,  and  champions  of  the  faith 
of  Christendom.  For  the  next  eighty  years  the  Knights 
of  St.  John  lived  respected  abroad,  and  secure  at  home 
in  their  island  fortress. 


CHAPTER  V. 

SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE. 

^  "  Where'er  that  mighty  arm  is  seen, 

The  bravest  be,  or  late  hath  been." 

BYBON,  Siege  of  Corintn. 

On  the  death  of  the  great  conqueror  Timour,  the  sons 
of  Bajazet  successfully  reclaimed  the  empire  of  their 
father.  The  illustrious  Sultan  Mohammed  II.,  the 
fourth  in  succession  from  Bajazet,  animated  by  the  same 
lust  of  power  and  by  the  same  insatiate  ambition  of  his 
ancestor,  and  yet  more  fortunate  than  he  in  his  un- 
dertakings, laid  siege  to  and  captured  the  famous 
capital  of  the  Byzantine  Empire, —  the  celebrated  city 
of  Constantinople, —  on  Tuesday,  May  29th,  1453. 
This  capture  led  to  an  attempt  by  the  conqueror, 
Mohammed  II.,  to  expel  his  hereditary  foes,  the  Sea- 
Kings  of  the  Mediterranean,  from  their  island  home 
at  Rhodes.  As  Cato  is  said  to  have  concluded  every 
speech  to  the  senators  of  Rome,  "  Delenda  est  Cartha- 
go"—  "  Carthage  must  be  destroyed  " — so  Mohammed 
II.,  had  continually  on  his  lips,  "  Constantinople  first, 
then  Rhodes."  A  series  of  political  events, —  the  pa- 


64  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

triotism  of  Scanderbeg  in  inducing  his  compatriots  to 
rebel  in  Epiras;  the  frequent  revolts  of  Huny.ides  in 
Hungary ;  the  determined  enmity  of  the  maritime  re- 
publics of  Genoa  and  Venice, —  caused  a  delay  in  the 
execution  of  his  imperial  designs;  but  never,  in  the 
most  distant  battle-field,  nor  in  the  most  secret  council- 
chamber,  did  he  lose  sight  of  the  the  second  task  he 
had  imposed  on  himself. 

In  the  spring  of  A.  D.  1480,  Mohammed  II.,  having 
conquered  his  other  enemies,  found  himself  at  liberty  to 
undertake  his  long-cherished  design  of  extermination 
against  the  Christian  Brotherhood  at  Rhodes.  The 
Knights-Hospitallers  had  for  their  Grand  Master  at  this 
crisis  a  man  of  tried  experience  and  of  most  heroic 
determination,  Peter  D'Aubusson.  He  made  his  own 
gunpowder,  designed  his  own  ships,  and  surpassed  the 
first  engineers  of  his  age  in  a  practical  knowledge  of  the 
science  of  defensive  war.  Undeterred  by  the  reputation 
of  his  mighty  foes,  undaunted  at  the  report  of  their 
gigantic  armaments,  he  resolutely  devoted  himself  to 
the  solemn  performance  of  his  duty,  and  resolved,  at 
the  hazard  of  his  life,  to  maintain  the  freedom  of  his 
island  and  the  independence  of  his  Order.  His  first  act 
was  to  write  a  spirited  and  moving  address  to  all  the 
Houses  of  his  Fraternity  in  Europe.  "  The  enemy,"  he 
said,  "  is  at  our  gates.  The  proud  Mohammed  puts  no 
bounds  to  his  ambitious  projects.  His  power  waxes 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  65 

every  day  more  formidable.  He  has  immense  stores, 
experienced  generals,  boundless  treasures  —  all  are  de- 
signed against  us.  He  has  sworn  our  ruin.  His  troops 
are  already  on  the  move.  At  the  first  approach  of 
spring  his  galle3*s  will  invade  our  coasts.  We  have  no 
help  but  our  courage.  We  are  lost  if  you  come  not 
to  our  aid."  This  pathetic  appeal  was  not  made  in 
vain^  Charles  de  Montholon,  Bertrand  de  Cluys,  com- 
manders of  France ;  Jean  Daw,  high-bailiff  of  Ger- 
many ;  Sir  Marmaduke  Lumley,  an  English  chevalier ; 
Anthony  D'Aubusson,  Viscount  de  Monteil,  the  Grand 
Master's  elder  brother,  with  other  brave  and  noble  war- 
riors in  France  and  Germany,  rallied  at  once  to  his 
standard.*  Many  of  the  Knights  in  Rhodes  also  were 
at  this  time  bound  to  their  chief  by  ties  of  personal 
gratitude,  as  he  had  devoted  large  sums  from  his  own 
private  revenues  to  pay  their  ransoms,  and  to  deliver 
them  from  slavery. 

D.Aubusson's  special  care  was  devoted  to  the  securi- 
ty of  his  fortifications.  These  consisted  of  a  lofty  ram- 
part, several  feet  in  thickness,  and  strengthened  by 
large  and  deep  trenches  which  encircled  the  whole 
fortress.  This  continuous  girdle  of  wall  was  further 
protected  at  intervals  by  thirteen  towers  and  by  five 
large  bastions.  The  Knights  and  their  men-at-arms 
were  entrusted  with  the  guardianship  of  these  walls, 

•Vartot,  voL  ii.,  p.  297. 


66  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

according  to  their  different  nations.  The  mole  and 
castle  of  Nicholas  were  committed  to  the  custody  of  the 
Germans ;  and  then,  in  succession,  came  the  command- 
ers with  their  men-at-arms  according  to  this  order: 
England,  Auvergne,  Arragon,  France,  Provence,  Italy, 
Castile,  and  Portugal.  Next  to  his  walls,  the  Grand 
Master  took  good  account  of,  and  made  ample  provision 
for,  his  magazines,  replenishing  them  with  abundant 
materials  of  warlike  ammunition,  and  stores,  and  pro- 
viding to  the  utmost  of  his  power  a  plentiful  commis- 
sariat. His  most  painful  task  was  the  destruction  by 
his  own  soldiers  of  the  beautiful  summer-houses,  gar- 
dens, and  pleasant  holiday-making  retreats  abounding 
in  the  picturesque  environs  of  the  city,  that  they  might 
not  afford  shelter  and  protection  to  the  invader. 

On  Tuesday,  May  23rd,  A.  D.  1480,  the  vast  fleet  of 
Mohammed  came  in  sight.  It  was  commanded  by 
Palseologus  Pacha,  a  member  of  the  late  Byzantine 
royal  family  reigning  at  Constantinople,  and  (to  his 
shame  be  it  said)  an  apostate,  after  the  fall  of  his 
dynasty,  to  Mohammedanism.  The  Turkish  Admiral 
had  collected  one  hundred  and  sixty  vessels  of  war, 
and  a  crowd  of  transports,  barks,  and  speornara. 
Although  the  approach  of  this  vast  flotilla  towards 
the  shores  of  Rhodes  could  not  by  any  means  have 
attained  to  the  splendor  and  magnificence  of  the  great 
naval  spectacle  presented  by  the  wonderful  passage,  in 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  67 

our  own  days,  of  the  allied  English  and  French  ar- 
mies from  Varna  to  Eupatoria  at  the  commencement  of 
the  Crimean  war,*  yet  the  sight  must  have  been  impos- 
ing enough  to  make  the  heart  of  every  Christian  sol- 
dier, who  witnessed  the -numerous  vessels  darkening  the 
waters,  beat  with  renewed  anxiety  and  with  redoubled 
ardor.  The  Turkish  soldiers  and  sailors,  rejoicing  at  the 
successful  termination  of  their  voyage,  exhibited  their  sat- 
isfaction, as  if  they  were  celebrating  a  victory,  rather 
than  preparing  for  a  contest,  by  the  thunder  of  ar- 
tillery, and  with  loud  strains  of  exhilarating  music  — 

"  A  flourish  proud, 
"Where  mingled  trump  and  clarion  loud, 

And  fife  and  kettle-dram, 
And  sackbut  deep,  and  psaltery, 
And  war-pipe,  with  discordant  cry, 
And  cymbal,  clattering  to  the  sky, 
Making  wild  music  bold  and  high."  f 

Their  landing  was  not  unopposed.  The  fire  of 
*  "The  arrangements  for  the  conveyance  of  the  troops  to  their  destination 
are  of  the  largest  and  most  perfect  character;  and  when  all  the  transports 
have  united,  they  will  display  to  the  gaze  of  the  enemy  an  armada  of  no  less 
than  600  vessels,  covered  and  protected  on  every  side  by  a  fleet  with  a  bat- 
tery of  3,000  pieces  of  artillery,  and  manned  by  the  bravest  seamen  in  the 

world All  the  vessels  were  drawn  up  in  immense  lines,  with  a 

front  extending  over  nine  miles,  and  with  an  unknown  depth,  for  the  rigging 
and  sails  of  the  distant  transports  belonging  to  the  expedition  were  lost  far 
below  the  horizon;  and  after  we  had  anchored,  stragglers  arrived  every  hour 
for  two  or  three  days." — The  War.  By  W.  H.  RUSSELL.  Boutledge:  Jxm- 
don,  1855.  Pp.  15^,  159. 
t  Scott's  Mamion,  Canto  IV.,  stanza  31. 


68  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

Forts  St.  Nicholas  and  St.  Elmo,  and  of  the  ramparts 
on  the  sea-face  of  the  fortress,  was  directed  upon  the 
ships.  The  men-at-arms  and  Turkopolieri,  led  by  the 
Knights,  rushed  breast-high  into  the  water  to  repel 
their  invaders.  Every  effort  was  in  vain.  The  Otto- 
mans divided  themselves  into  numerous  bands  and  com- 
panies ;  while  some  engaged  the  attention  of  their 
opponents,  others,  at  a  safer  distance,  secured  the  dis- 
embarkation of  their  troops,  horses,  and  artillery. 

On  the  morrow  after  their  landing,  a  herald  ad- 
vanced with  solemn  ceremonial  to  the  gate  of  the 
Stracla  del  Cavalieri,  aiid  summoned  D'Aubusson  to 
surrender  the  town  and  fortress.  His  proposals  were 
rejected  with  scornful  indignation.  Palaeologus,  upon 
this  refusal,  commenced  the  siege  in  form.  His  chief 
engineer,  to  whom  he  intrusted  the  whole  conduct  of 
his  plans,  was  a  German,  George  Frepand,  commonly 
called  "  Master  George."  This  man  bad  once  been  a 
member  of  the  Order  of  St.  John;  but  had  been  dis- 
missed the  Fraternity  for  malpractices.  He  now,  in 
revenge,  sought  the  ruin  of  his  former  comrades,  and 
returned  to  the  island  as  the  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
Ottoman  artillery.  By  his  advice  Palseologus  made  the 
Fort  St.  Nicholas,  at  the  extremity  of  the  northern  arm 
of  the  great  mple  protecting  the  harbor,  the  first  object 
of  his  attack.  Frepand,  to  effect  a  practicable  breach 
in  this  tower,  erected  a  battery  of  three  brass  bombards 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  69 

on  the  shore,  close  to  a  small  chapel  dedicated  to  St. 
Anthony,  scarcely  distant  200  yards.  D'Aubusson  as- 
signed the  defence  of  this  important  post  to  an  approved 
soldier,  the  Commander  Caretto,  supported  by  a  com- 
pany of  French  and  Spanish  men-at-arms.  They 
mounted  cannon  to  command  the  battery  of  their  op- 
ponents, and  took  precautions  against  an  assault  by 
placing  heavy  planks,  bristling  with  nails  and  iron 
spikes,  in  the  shallow  fords  near  the  tower.  In  the 
meanwhile  the  entrenchments  and  early  siege  operations 
of  the  besiegers  were  delayed  and  hindered  by  the  fre- 
quent skirmishes  and  gallant  onsets  of  the  Knights. 
In  one  of  these  a  brave  officer  of  Auvergne,  Chevalier 
Murat  (an  ancestor,  perhaps,  of  the  famous  horseman, 
the  beau  sabreur  of  Napoleon  L,  Joachim  Murat,  King 
of  Naples),  having  advanced  too  far  in  the  ardor  of 
fight,  was  slain ;  and  one  of  the  Spahis, —  the  Uhlans 
of  the  Turkish  cavalry, —  cut  off  his  head,  and  carried 
it  away  in  barbaric  triumph  on  the  point  of  his  spear. 
Palaeologus  and  his  engineer  succeeded  in  their  efforts, 
and  made  a  breach  in  the  tower  of  St.  Nicholas.  The 
9th  day  of  June  was  fixed  upon  for  the  first  attempt  at 
aft  escalade,  and  for  the  assault  upon  the  breach.  Two 
hours  before  daybreak  he  ordered  his  galleys  and  pon- 
toons, laden  with  infantry,  to  advance  towards  the 
tower.  The  vessels  soon  reached  the  mole.  The  sol- 
diers jumped  on  shore,  and,  with  loud  and  frantio 


TO  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

cries,  in  spite  of  the  fire  poured  on  them,  pressed  on- 
wards to  the  assault.  They  advanced  with  their  scal- 
ing-ladders to  the  foot  of  the  breach,  and  placing  them 
with  the  utmost  intrepidity  upon  the  heaps  of  rubbish 
and  stones  brought  down  by  the  bombards,  mounted 
sword  in  hand  with  the  utmost  resolution.  D'Aubus- 
son,  always  the  first  when  danger  was  at  hand,  had 
joined  his  friends  on  the  earliest  note  of  alarm,  and 
now  performed  at  once  the  duty  of  a  commander  and 
of  a  soldier.  The  defenders,  animated  by  his  presence 
and  example,  lined  the  breach,  and  made  a  living 
rampart.  While  some  upset  the  scaling-ladders,  others 
threw  down  huge  masses  of  stone,  and  crushed  the  as- 
sailants. The  Turks  were  equally  determined  to  win 
these  first  honors  of  the  siege.  They  replaced  their  lad- 
ders, and,  with  grappling  irons,  and  iron  hooks  fastened 
to  the  end  of  long  cords,  tried  to  catch  their  oppo- 
nents, pull  them  over  the  wall,  and  throttle  them.  At 
last  an  element  more  potent  than  human  wrath,  decided 
the  strife.  The  fire-ships  were  brought  to  bear  on  the 
Turkish  vessels,  and  Palaeologus  hastily  retreated,  re- 
pulsed and  beaten. 

"His  blaring  galleys  still  distract  his  sight; 
He  tore  his  beard  and,  foaming,  fled  the  fight"  * 

An  incident,  illustrating  D'Aubusson's  coolness   and 
courage,  occurred  on  this  occasion.     On  his  losing  his 
*  Byron's  Corsair. 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  71 

helmet  in  the  fight,  Caretto  entreated  him  not  to  endan- 
ger his  valuable  life,  but  to  seek  a  place  of  shelter,  to 
whom  he  replied :  "  The  post  of  danger  is  the  place  of 
honor,  and  of  right  belongs  to  me  as  chief.  If  I  fall," 
he  added,  with  a  pleasant  smile,  "  you  should  the  more 
hope  for  yourself  than  fear  for  me."  These  last  words 
were  said  in  reference  to  his  chance  of  succeeding  to  his 
office  of  Grand  ]\  Easter. 

The  tower  of  St.  Nicholas  was  greatly  injured,  and 
was  left  by  the  defeated  enemy  in  a  most  dilapidated 
condition.  D'Aubusson  himself  has  recorded,  iu  a 
letter  sent  to  the  Pope,  the  measures  he  took  for  the 
repair  of  the  mischief  done  to  his  works  in  this  first  ter- 
rible contest. 

"  We,"  he  writes,*  "  being  anxious  for  the  safety  of 
the  tower,  beholding  its  great  and  fearful  ruin,  strove  to 
prop  up  the  remainder  of  the  wall ;  and  since  such 
a  course  seemed  most  judicious  after  so  great  a  down- 
fall, we  decided  upon  protecting,  not  the  tower  only, 
but  also  the  mole  of  St.  Nicholas..  With  the  most  vigi- 
lant care,  and  with  numberless  expedients,  a  thousand 
laborers  worked  day  and  night  without  intermission. 
They  dug  a  deep  trench,  and  constructed  a  bulwark 
with  timber  at  the  top  of  the  mole,  around  the  tower, 
and  in  support  of  its  foundations,  and  completed  an  im- 
pregnable redoubt  with  great  cost.  There  we  place  a 

*  Vertot,  Book  II.,  p.  311,  12. 


72  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

guard  of  our  bravest  warriors  within  the  bulwark,  and 
supply  them  with  stores  and  ammunition ;  and  on  the 
rampart  we  place  bombards,  which  could  sweep  the 
approaches  in  an  attack." 

Palaeologus  Pacha  abandoned  for  the  present  the 
intention  of  another  attack  on  Fort  St.  Nicholas,  and 
directed  his  efforts  to  a  different  part  of  the  walls.  He 
erected  his  batteries  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  town, 
and  poured  a  brisk  and  heavy  cannonade  upon  a  por- 
tion of  the  wall  bordering  on  the  quarter  or  district 
allotted  to  the  Jews.  This,  as  Frepand  well  knew,  was 
the  weakest  part  of  the  fortifications.  It  was  also 
the  most  populous.  Many  of  the  houses  were  built 
in  close  proximity  to  the  walls,  and  an  attack  on  this 
quarter  would  produce  the  most  misery,  and  impart  the 
greatest  terror  to  the  inhabitants.  The  battery  con- 
structed against  this  new  point  of  attack  was  most  for- 
midable. It  consisted  of  eight  large  siege  guns  named 
basilisks,  because  ornamented  with  huge  coiled  ser- 
pents, which  threw  immense  blocks  of  stone  eight  or 
nine  inches  in  diameter.  These  heavy  pieces  soon 
caused  serious  havoc  to  the  old  and  crumbling  ramparts 
of  this  portion  of  the  fortress.  Never  were  the  re- 
sources of  D'Aubusson  more  severely  tried,  and  never 
did  he  come  out  more  triumphantly  from  an  emergency. 
He  took  in  with  a  single  glance  the  gravity  of  the  situa- 
tion. Without  hesitation  he  pulled  down  all  the  houses 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  73 

bordering  on  the  rampart,  and  dug  upon  the  site  where 
they  stood  a  large  trench,  and  built  over  it  a  new 
wall  of  brick.  Then  was  witnessed  the  most  curious 
scene  that  happened  during  the  siege.  The  whole  pop- 
ulation turned  out  to  take  their  share  in  this  stupen- 
dous and  pressing  work.  There  was  no  cessation  of  la- 
bor by  night  or  by  day.  Jewisii  maidens  arrayed  in 
Eastern  dress,  Christian  nuns  and  priests  habited  in  the 
costumes  of  their  order,  old  men  with  tottering  step, 
youths  and  children,  delighted  to  be  employed,  mixed 
with  and  assisted  the  laborers  and  soldiers  to  the  ut- 
most of  their  power.  So  impressed  was  D'Aubusson 
with  the  importance  of  the  work,  that  he  remained 
all  the  night  upon  the  spot,  watching  and  superintend 
ing  the  movements  of  that  motley  and  agitated  throng, 
seated  on  his  charger,  and  arrayed  in  his  polished  over- 
coat of  gilded  mail,  the  sheen  of  which  was  seen  by 
all,  as  it  burnt  under  the  bright  gleams  of  an  eastern 
moon.  At  the  completion  of  this  work,  which  under 
other  circumstances  would  have  occupied  as  many  days 
as  it  now  did  hours,  D'Aubusson,  with  a  parental 
care,  removed  the  women,  children,  and  aged  men  to 
a  safer  quarter,  altogether  removed  from  the  range  of 
this  destructive  battery.  -He  made  also  an  attempt 
to  repay  Palaeologus  in  his  own  coin.  He  instructed 
his  carpenters  in  the  construction  of  a  wooden  machine, 
which  threw  immense  stones,  and  not  only  crushed  the 


74  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

soldiers  below  the  walls,  but  injured  the  trenches 
and  mines.  The  Knights  and  their  men  jocularly 
named  it  "  The  Tribute,"  in  allusion  to  the  tribute 
which  the  Sultan  wished  to  impose  on  them,  and  which 
they  were  willing  to  pay  in  no  other  mode  than  by 
this  engine. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  artillerists  of  Palaeologus  hav- 
ing declared  the  breach  in  the  walls  of  the  Jews' 
quarter  to  be  practicable  for  an  entrance  by  the  troops, 
the  Turkish  Commander-in-Chief  came  personally  to 
inspect  the  position  before  he  gave  the  word  for  the 
assault.  How  great  was  his  astonishment  and  surprise 
to  see  what  had  been  done  by  the  besieged  in  construct- 
ing a  new  and  formidable_  defence,  and  in  removing 
the  population,  so  that  his  mighty  basilisks  had  only 
belched  forth  ineffectual  fires,  and  he  was  again  thwart- 
ed in  his  plan  and  disappointed  of  his  purpose. 

Under  these  circumstances,  Palaeologus,  after  the 
fashion  of  an  Eastern  potentate,  determined  to  destroy 
his  adversary  by  subtlety  if  he  could  not  prevail  by 
force.  Knowing  well  that  D'Aubusson  was  the  life 
and  soul  of  the  defence,  and  that  until  he  was  re- 
moved out  of  the  way  he  could  not  hope  for  success,  he 
induced,  by  promises  of  a  great  reward,  two  men  to 
feign  desertion  to  the  enemy,  that  they  might  kill 
the  illustrious  Grand  Master  by  secret  poison  or  by 
open  assassination.  These  men,  received  without  suspi- 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  75 

cion  by  D'Aubusson,  endeavored  to  corrupt  and  bribe 
over  his  private  secretary  to  their  designs.  He,  with 
a  praiseworthy  fidelity,  revealed  the  plot  to  his  master, 
and  the  two  traitors  paid  with  their  lives  the  just  penal- 
ty of  their  despicable  conduct. 

Neither  was  this  the  only  treacherous  act  designed  or 
encouraged  by  Palaeologus.  If  he  did  not  concoct, 
he  was  certainly  privy  to  a  deeper  scheme  of  un- 
worthy dissimulation.  He  allowed  Frepand,  his  chief 
engineer,  to  go  over  to  the  enemy,  that  he  might 
discover  and  betray  to  him,  by  signals  preconcerted 
between  them,  the  weak  points  in  the  fortifications. 
D'Aubusson,  however,  on  this  occasion  knew  the  man 
he  had  to  deal  with  too  well  to  be  deceived.  He  as- 
sumed a  friendly  tone  towards  his  visitor,  but  ap- 
pointed six  of  his  trustiest  Knights  to  keep  over  him 
strict  watch  and  ward,  and  never  to  permit  him  to 
be  out  of  their  sight.  On  his  approaching  a  bastion 
he  was  sternly  asked  what  he  wanted,  and  why  he 
came  there-?  After  some  days  of  trial,  without  any 
overt  act  of  treachery  being  perpetrated,  D'Aubusson, 
well  assured  of  his  skill  as  an  artillerist,  determined  to 
test  his  fidelity  or  to  ascertain  his  falseness  by  entrust- 
ing him  with  the  charge  of  a  cannon.  He  quickly 
discovered  that  Frepand  betrayed  his  confidence,  and 
endeavored  to  correspond  with  the  enemy  by  the  prear- 
ranged manner  of  communication.  He  pointed  his  gun 


76  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

to  the  weaker  part  of  the  fortifications,  and  then  there 
invariably  ensued  an  attack.  So  nefarious  a  treason 
was  quickly  avenged  by  a  righteous  retribution.  Mas- 
ter George,  after  a  speedy  trial,  expiated  his  crime 
by  the  forfeiture  of  his  life. 

"The  evil  deed 
Brings  its  requital  as  the  doer's  meed." 

Palseologus,  equally  unsuccessful  in  his  secret  trea- 
sons as  in  his  open  attacks,  yet  nothing  daunted  by  the 
failure  of  his  purposes,  determined,  without  relaxing  his 
hold  on  the  Jewish  quarter,  to  make  one  more  grand 
effort  to  obtain  the  much-coveted  Fort  of  St.  Nicholas. 
If  D'Aubusson  had  improved  his  means  of  defence,  the 
Turkish  leader  also  had  increased  his  facilities  of  attack. 
He  had  employed  the  interval  of  time  since  his  first 
repulse  in  constructing  a  huge  pontoon,  or  floating 
bridge,  by  which  his  troops  might  pass  as  if  on  dry  laud 
across  the  narrow  strip  of  water  which  separated  his 
camp  from  the  tower  of  St.  'Nicholas.  Some  bold  and 
dexterous  swimmers,  during  the  dark  hours  of  the 
night,  conveyed  an  anchor  placed  on  a  floating  plat- 
form, and  fastened  it  under  the  water,  close  beside 
the  fort.  They  attached  to  the  round  ring  of  this  an- 
chor a  strong  hawser,  or  cable,  the  other  end  of  which 
was  fastened  to  the  bridge,  so  that  by  pulling  at  this 
rope,  they  might  tow  the  pontoon  across,  and  place 
it  in  the  position  required  for  the  passage  of  the  troops. 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  77 

Too  sure  and  strict  a  watch,  however,  was  kept  at  this 
important  post  for  any  such  operations  to  be  arranged 
far  without  notice  and  discovery.  It  so  happened  that 
a  lynx-eyed  English  sailor  was  on  the  look-out,  Ger- 
vaise  Roger,  and  saw  everything  that  was  done.  Some 
time  after  the  Turks  had  returned  to  the  shore  he 
quietly  loosed  the  rope,  dropping  it  into  the  water,  and 
carrying  off  the  anchor,  presented  it  to  the  Grand  Mas- 
ter, in  confirmation  of  his  report,  and  received  for  his 
vigilance  a  munificent  reward. 

The  Turkish  commanders  resolved  on  this  occasion 
upon  a  night  attack,  in  the  hope  of  taking  the  garrison 
by  surprise.  The  arrangements,  to  secure  success,  were 
made  with  greater  care  and  larger  preparation  than 
in  the  first  attack.  Palaeologus  assumed  the  command, 
accompanied  by  the  Admiral-in-Chief  of  the  galleys, 
and  by  Merla-Bey,  the  son-in-law  of  the  Sultan,  Mo- 
hammed II.  The  night  of  Thursday,  the  13th  of  July, 
was  chosen  for  the  attempt.  About  twelve  o'clock 
everything  was  in  readiness.  The  floating-bridge, 
towed  into  position  by  boats,  in  place  of  the  loosened 
cable,  was  found  to  answer  its  purpose.  The  Turkish 
soldiers,  in  the  highest  spirits,  and  in  perfect  silence, 
rapidly  passed  over,  and,  reaching  the  mole  in  silence, 
attacked  the  fortress  on  all  sides  with  the  greatest  im- 
petuosity. But  D'Aubusson  himself  was  in  command. 
The  discovery  of  the  anchor  was  hint  enough  for 


78  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

him.  He  had,  with  timely  caution,  reinforced  his  men- 
at-arms,  and  lined  his  walls  with  numerous  arquebusiers 
and  several  bombards,  and  now  waited,  with  confident 
self-reliance,  the  anticipated  onset  of  his  foes.  On  hear- 
ing the  grating  of  the  bridge  against  the  mole,  and  the 
quick  tramp  of  the  soldiers,  he  gave  the  command  to 
fire;  and,  in  spite  of  the  darkness,  numbers  of  the 
enemy  were  wounded,  and  fell.  The  fight,  however, 
waxed  hot. and  obstinate.  The  bridge  continually  fur- 
nished fresh  troops  to  the  assailants,  who  never  fought 
with  more  desperate  valor.  Many  fixed  their  ladders 
only  to  be  cut  .down  and  slain.  The  youthful  Merla- 
Bey  set  a  noble  example.  Almost  alone  he  gained  a 
footing  on  the  rampart,  and,  protected  in  part  by  the 
heaps  of  dead  bodies,  and  covered  with  wounds,  en- 
tered into  single  combat  with  a  Knight;  and,  while 
he  slew  his  adversary,  fell  himself  dead  by  his  side.  At 
the  same  time  a  not  less  furious  fight  was  maintained 
on  the  water.  The  fire  ships  of  D'Aubusson  floated 
down  and  endangered  the  galleys  that  surrounded  the 
fort.  Neither  the  shrieks  of  the  rowers,  the  roar  and 
smoke  of  the  cannons,  the  groans  of  the  wounded,  the 
shouts  of'tho  living,  nor  the  horrors  of  darkness,  caused 
any  relaxation  in  the  struggle  of  the  combatants.  All 
desired  to  conquer  or  die.  At  last,  the  day  dawned 
and  revealed  the  havoc  made  among  the  Paynim.  The 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  79 

water  in  the  harbor  was  covered  with  corpses,  bows, 
arrows,  turbans,  and  fragments  of  burning  ships. 

The  artillerymen  in  the  fort  and  on  the  walls  could 
now  see  the  bridge,  and  brought  their  guns  to  bear  on 
it,  so  that  with  the  weight  of  the  retreating  crowd  and 
with  the  shot  from  the  tower,  it  was  soon  broken  and 
destroyed.  The  Turks  fled  in  confusion  in  spite  of  all 
the  promises  and  of  all  the  threats  of  their  commanders, 
while  the  Knights  made  sorties,  and  rushed  even  into 
the  water  to  fight  with  their  opponents.  A  monk 
named  Antony  Fradin  gained  much  notoriety  in  this 
pursuit.  Clad  in  his  monk's  robe,  and  armed  with  a 
sword  taken  from  a  dead  soldier,  he  rushed  into  the 
sea  up  to  his  waist,  and  dealt  destruction  to  the  foe ; 

"  While  groaning  victims,  and  wild  cries  for  life, 
Proclaimed  how  well  he  did  the  work  of  strife."  * 

The  loss  of  the. Turks  in  this  renewed  attack  on  Fort 
Nicholas  was  estimated  at  2,500  men.  The  Knights 
had  many  wounded,  but  only  twelve  killed.  Among 
them  were  fourteen  English  Knights,  with  their  suit- 
able complement  of  esquires  and  men-at-arms,  present 
at  the  siege.  Out  of  this  number  seven  were  slain. 

Palseologus,  after  this  defeat,  was  for  three  days 
completely  stunned  and  puzzled.  Lost  in  a  fit  of 
irresolution  and  abstraction,  he  knew  not  what  to  do. 
He  soon  felt  that  the  chief  thing  he  had  cause  to  dread 

•  Corsair. 


80  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

was  the  fury  of  the  Sultan*  at  the  sacrifice  of  his 
soldiers,  and  resolved  to  prosecute  the  siege  with  in- 
creased vigor.  He  commanded  a  general  bombardment 
of  the  town,  which  was  continued  without  cessation  day 
and  night.  He  once  again  directed  his  more  particular- 
attention  to  the  "Jews'  Quarter,"  that  portion  of  the 
enciente  where  the  original  wall  was  most  injured. 
Here  he  filled  up  the  great  trench  that  D'Aubusson 
had  digged,  and  made  it  level  with  the  ground.  In  the 
meantime  his  artillerists  declared  that  nine  out  of  the 
thirteen  towers  of  the  ramparts  were  considerably  in- 
jured, that  several  breaches  were  practicable  for  an  as- 
sault, and  that  the  opening  in  the  walls  near  the  Jews' 
quarter  was  wide  enough  for  men  on  horseback  to  ride 
into  the  fortress.  Under  these  circumstances  he  de- 
manded a  conference  with  the  Grand  Master,  to  explain 
to  him  the  situation  of  affairs,  in  the  hope  that  he 
would,  without  further  contest,  accede  to  terms  of 
surrender.  The  request  for  an  interview  was  granted. 
The  Pacha  sent  one  of  his  chief  officers  as  his  ambassa- 

*Sir  E.  Creasy  (vol.  i.,  p.  129,  History  of  the  Ottoman  Turks)  gives  an 
instance  of  the  fury  of  the  Sultan:  —  "Mohammed,  in  his  wrath,  ordered 
his  defeated  Admiral,  Baltaoghli,  to  be  impaled  on  the  spot.  The  murmurs 
and  entreaties  of  the  Janizzaries  made  him  recall  the  atrocious  command; 
but  he  partly  wreaked  his  wrath  by  inflicting  personal  chastisement  on  hia 
brave  but  unsuccessful  officer.  Four  slaves  stretched  the  Admiral  prostrate 
to  the  ground,  and  Mohammed  dealt  him  one  hundred  blows  with  his  heavy 
battle~macd»" 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  81 

dor,  while  D'Aubusson  deputed  Antony  Gualter,  Cha- 
tellan  of  Rhodes,  to  represent  him.  The  Turkish 
nuncio  acknowledged  the  brave  conduct  of  the  be- 
sieged, and  at  the  same  time  pointed  out  the  fruitless- 
ness  of  any  further  resistance  when  his  master  had 
such  an  overwhelming  n-umber  of  soldiers,  and  had 
made  such  effectual  breaches  in  the  walls  and  bastions, 
and  jyhen  any  further  resistance  would  be  a  useless 
sacrifice  of  human  life,  and  a  just  pretext  for  the  pillage 
of  the  city,  and  for  the  slaughter  of  the  garrison. 
The  Chatellan  refused  to  listen  to  his  proposals,  and 
briefly  replied,  "That  brave  men  were  better  than 
walls  or  bastions." 

Palaeologus,  exceedingly  enraged  at  the  rejection  of 
his  terms,  made  an  oath  to  put  every  soldier  to  the 
sword.  So  great  was  his  assurance  of  success  that 
he  ordered  a  number  of  wooden  stakes  to  be  prepared 
for  impaling  alive  the  Knights  and  their  companions, 
and  promised  to  give  the  town  up  to  the  soldiers.  In 
order  to  distract  the  attention  of  D'Aubusson,  and  to 
divide  his  forces,  he  ordered  ladders  and  all  things 
necessary  for  an  assault  to  be  prepared  in  different 
places.  But  the  real  attack  was  designed  to  be 
against  the  rampart  of  the  Jews'  quarter,  which  had 
been  previously  attempted,  and  had  been  so  long  ex- 
posed to  the  cannonade.  A  furious  bombardment,  con- 
tinued for  twenty-four  hours,  was  again  carried  on 
6 


82  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

around  the  fortress,  but  especially  against  this  doomed 
portion  of  the  town.  -At  last,  on  Thursday,  July  27th, 
at  sunrise,  the  vast  Turkish  army,  in  good  order  and  in 
complete  silence,  advanced,  and  by  a  vigorous  and  rapid 
onset  killed  the  sentinels  on  the  tower  of  the  Jews' 
quarter,  making  themselves  masters  of  the  fort  without 
any  encounter.  The  Christian  troops,  through  the  de- 
struction of  the  walls,  had  been  compelled  to  hide 
themselves  behind  the  heaps  of  rubbish  from  the  fire 
of  the  cannons,  and  some  of  them  had  fallen  asleep, 

"  Worn  out  with  toil,  and  tired  with  changing  blows."  * 

The  Turks,  proud  of  their  success,  planted  their 
standards  on  the  rampart,  while  Paleeologus  ordered 
forward  fresh  troops  to  occupy  the  walls.  Then  was 
the  moment  of  the  utmost  peril  to  Rhodes.  But  effec- 
tual help  was  at  hand.  D'Aubusson,  made  aware  of 
the  danger,  seized  the  sacred  banner  of  the  Order,  and 
turning  to  the  brave  Knights  whom  he  kept  near  his 
own  person  to  help  on  occasions  of  emergency,  "  Now, 
my  friends,  is  the  time  to  fight  for  our  religion  and  for 
Rhodes,  or  to  find  our  sepulchres  in  her  ruins."  He 
advanced  at  a  rapid  pace  at  the  head  of  his  body-guard, 
and  saw,  to  his  intense  surprise,  a  crowd  of  Turks  fill- 
ing the  breach  and  rampart,  and  the  platform  below  it. 
Then  was  a  sight  not  often  seen.  The  besieged  became 

*  Byron's  Corsair. 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  83 

all  at  once  the  besiegers.  As  the  houses  and  streets 
occupied  by  the  Knights  were  lower  than  the  ramparts 
and  platforms,  they  could  not  reach  the  assailants. 
They  quickly  seized  some  ladders  which  were  fortu- 
nately lying  near  the  walls.  D'Aubusson  himself, 
heedless  of  danger,  was  the  first  to  mount,  and  his  bold 
companions,  some  on  ladders,  some  by  clambering  over 
the*uins,  gained  the  summit  of  the  rampart.  The  Turks 
pushed  back  the  Knights  and  their  men-at-arms  by 
firing  their  arquebuses  and  arrows,  and  by  hurling 
great  stones  on  them.  All  the  valor  and  spirit  of  the 
Hospitallers  could  not  avail  against  so  furious  a  resist- 
ance, and  many  fell  back  wounded  and  dead.  The 
Grand  Master  was  twice  repulsed,  and  yet,  in  face  of 
the  death  with  which  he  was  threatened  on  all  sides, 
and  without  a  thought  of  the  two  wounds  he  had  al- 
ready received,  being  bravely  supported  by  his  soldiers, 
he  gained  a  firm  footing  on  the  platform  occupied  by 
his  foes.  From  that  moment  the  combat  was  fought  on 
more  equal  terms.  The  Knights  pressed  upon  their  op- 
ponents, sword  in  hand.  All  was  confusion.  A  gen- 
eral melee  ensued,  in  which  each  man  fought  the  other 
in  a  regular  soldier's  battle,  such  as  Inkerman  was 
called.  D'Aubusson  greatly  distinguished  himself,  and 
cut  down  with  his  stalwart  arm  many  of  his  foes. 

"  Sweeps  his  long  arm  —  that  sahre's  whirling  sway, 
Sheds  fast  atonement  for  its  first  delay."  * 

*  Corsair. 


84  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

The  victory  began  to  declare  in  his  favor.  The 
Turkish  battalions  wavered.  The  Pacha  Palseologus 
quickly  perceived  the  weakness,  and  ordered  his  Janiz- 
zaries  to  advance  in  support  of  the  yielding  legion.  He 
placed  himself  among  them,  to  encourage  the  bold  and 
to  punish  the  laggart.  Quickly  recognizing  D'Aubus- 
son  in  the  fray,  less  by  his  splendid  armor  than  by  the 
destruction  everywhere  caused  by  his  presence,  he  stir- 
red up  his  Janizzaries  by  the  promise  of  a  magnificent 
reward  to  set  upon  him,  and  to  avenge  in  his  death  the 
slaughter  of  their  companions.  Twelve  of  his  men 
vowed  to  slay  him  or  to  perish  "in  the  attempt.  They 
threw  themselves  impetuously  into  the  melee,  and  made 
their  way  against  all  antagonists  to  the  spot  where 
D'Aubusson  was  fighting,  and  in  spite  of  the  rally  of 
the  Knights  to  his  assistance,  inflicted  on  him  five 
severe  wounds.  D'Aubusson  heeded  them  not  in  the 
excitement  of  the  battle,  and  continued  to  fight  with 
his  usual  ardor.  His  companions  perceived  the  blood 
streaming  over  his  armor,  and  entreated  him  to  retire. 
"No,"  said  the  grand  old  man,  in  answer  to  the  tender 
entreaty ;  "  let  me  die  here.  I  can  never  fall  more 
gloriously  than  in  defence  of  my  faith,  my  Order,  and 
my  brothers."  These  heroic  sentiments,  with  the  sight 
of  his  wounds  and  blood,  kindled  such  a  desire  to  re- 
venge him,  and  so  inflamed  the  ardor  of  the  soldiery, 
that  they  determined  not  to  survive  their  chief,  and 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  85 

rushed  with  renewed  courage  upon  the  thickest  bat- 
talions of  their  foes,  and  made  such  a  dreadful  carnage, 
that  the  Turks,  panic-struck  at  the  fury  of  their  blows, 
took  them  for  fresh  troops,  or  perhaps,  as  the  historian* 
says,  for  beings  more  than  mortal.  They  lost  at  once 
their  courage,  judgment,  and  presence  of  mind.  All 
fled,  and  so  great  became  the  panic  that  they  fought 
wifh  each  other  for  a  quicker  and  clearer  passage  to 
escape  by.  The  Knights  took  advantage  of  the  gen- 
eral consternation.  Not  content  with  the  re-possession 
of  the  wall,  rampart,  and  platform,  they  sallied  out  in 
pursuit  of  the  retreating  Ottomans.  In  vain  did  Palseo- 
logus  endeavor  to  reassure  them.  In  spite  of  his  exer- 
tions their  stampede  increased.  They  even  dragged 
him  along  with  them  in  the  general  rout,  and  he  was 
too  happy  in  finding  a  safe  asylum  in  his  camp.  He 
gave  orders  for  an  immediate  re-embarkation,  and  re- 
turned to  his  imperial  master  overwhelmed  with  shame 
and  confusion.  D'Aubusson,  all  covered  with  his  own 
blood,  and  with  that  of  his  enemies,  was  conveyed  by 
loving  hearts  and  tender  hands  to  his  palace,  where, 
after  a  few  weeks,  he  recovered,  and  was  soon  able  to 
go  in  solemn  procession  to  the  Cathedral  of  St.  John,  to 
return  public  thanks  to  the  God  of  battles  for  the  res- 
toration of  his  health,  and  for  the  unlocked  for  deliver- 
ance from  his  enemies. 

*  Vertot,  VoL  II.,  p.  330. 


86  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

Such  are  the  chief  features  of  this  successful  defiance 
by  the  Sea-Kings  of  the  whole  weight  of  the  vast  Otto- 
man Empire.  The  proud  threat  of  the  Mohammedan 
conqueror  of  the  fair  city  of  Constantinople  was  unful- 
filled, the  avowed  object  of  his  life  and  the  darling  aim 
of  his  ambition  were  frustrated. 

"  Unwisely  who  provokes  an  abler  foe, 
Conquest  still  flies  him,  and  he  strives  for  woe." 

From  first  to  last,  by  night  or  day,  by  land  or  water, 
by  bombardment  or  escalade,  the  Ottoman  attempt  had 
totally  failed.  The  Turkish  generals  and  soldiers  were 
foiled  and  beaten  by  the  perseverance,  valor,  and  con- 
fidence in  a  righteous  cause  of  D'Aubusson  and  his 
companions.  Europe,  saved  by  their  firmness  and  en- 
couraged by  their  example,  rang  with  the  praises  of  the 
**  Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean." 

Mohammed  II.  did  not  long  survive  the  defeat  of  his 
fleet  and  army.  The  keen  sense  of  his  disappointment 
shortened  his  life.  In  the  feverish  dreams  of  his  sick- 
bed the  words,  "  Rhodes,  Rhodes,  Rhodes  !  "  were  con- 
tinually on  his  lips.  He  died  Thursday,  May  4th,  A.  D. 
1481.  The  succession  to  his  throne  and  power  gave 
rise  to  a  stormy  civil  war  between  his  two  sons,  Bajazet 
and  Zizim ;  so  that  the  fraternity  of  the  Sea-Kings 
breathed  freely  in  the  clear  conviction  that  there  would 
be  no  second  immediate  invasion  of  their  home,  but 
that  the  ambitious  schemes  of  Mohammed  II.  were 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  87 

buried  with  him  in  his  tomb.  D'Aubusson,  indeed,  by 
a  singular  coincidence,  became  the  arbiter  of  the  des- 
tiny of  these  two  sons  of  his  great  enemy  and  op- 
pressor. Zizim,  the  younger  brother,  in  his  hour  of 
defeat,  sought  an  asylum  at  Rhodes.  The  request  was 
granted,  but  it  proved  an  evil  boon,  as  it  led  to  his 
being  kept,  under  various  pretexts,  a  prisoner  in  Europe 
unt^l-  his  death.  Bajazet,  in  his  turn,  regarding  the 
Grand  Master  and  his  Fraternity  with  favor,  as  they 
were  the  means  of  relieving  him  of  the  rivalry  of  his 
brother,  heaped  upon  them  a  guerdon  of  rich  gifts  and 
royal  munificence. 

Among  the  presents  given  by  Bajazet  was  one  that 
we  should  think  it  strange  for  a  king  to  give,  but 
which  was  very  differently  estimated  by  all  classes  in 
those  days,  viz.,  a  relic.  Pieces  of  the  actual  or  true 
cross  on  which  our  Saviour  suffered,  or  small  parts  of 
the  bodies  of  persons  supposed  to  be  remarkable  for  their 
sanctity,  were  treasured  up  as  relics,  and  were  supposed 
by  some  persons  to  possess  certain  virtues  for  curing 
diseases  or  warding  off  evil.  Hairs  from  the  head  of 
the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  links,  or  even  filings,  from 
the  chain  with  which  St.  Peter  was  bound,  part  of  the 
pillars  tied  to  which  St.  Paul  was  scourged,  or  the  finger, 
foot,  or  nail  of  some  early  saint  or  martyr,  were  thu8 
objects  greatly  coveted  and  sought  after.  It  is  wise  to 
pay  honor  where  honor  is  due ;  but  adoration  and  re- 


88  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

spect  to  such  relics  as  these  is  forbidden,  as  "  a  fond  or 
foolish  thing,  vainly  invented,  and  repugnant  to  the 
Word  of  God."  Bajazet  gave  D'Aubusson,  as  the  most 
precious  gift  he  could  think  of  to  show  his  gratitude  for 
his  services,  the  hand  of  John  the  Baptist.  This  relic, 
however,  was  enclosed  in  a  magnificent  casket  of  cy- 
press-wood, lined  with  crimson  velvet,  and  enriched 
with  diamonds,  rubies,  and  numerous  other  precious 
stones. 

There  is  a  legend  connected  with  it,  showing  how 
so  curious  a  relic  came  into  the  possession  of  a  Moham- 
medan Sultan.  The  body  of  John  Baptist,  after  his 
beheadal  by  King  Herod,  is  asserted  to  have  been 
buried  at  Sebast,  where  he  died.  St.  Luke,  it  is  said, 
opened  his  tomb,  and  took  away  from  the  dead  body 
the  right  hand  as  being  the  most  sacred  part,  because 
at  the  Baptism  of  our  Blessed  Lord  in  the  Jordan  it 
had  touched  His  head.  He  took  it  to  Antioch,  and 
placed  it  in  the  church  which  he  founded  in  that  city. 
Here  it  remained  until  Constantino  Porphyrogenitus 
(born  in  the  purple),  Emperor  of  Constantinople,  bribed 
one  of  the  monks  to  whose  care  it  was  intrusted  to 
steal  it,  and  bring  it  to  him  at  Constantinople.  It  was 
placed  with  all  honor  in  the  Church  of  St.  John  in  that 
capital,  and  there  it  remained  till  the  capture  of  that 
city  by  Mohammed  II.  The  Ottoman  conqueror  seized 
it,  and  for  the  sake  of  the  costly  jewels  on  its  case, 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  89 

placed  it  in  the  public  treasury :  from  which  it  was 
transferred  by  the  Sultan  Bajazet  as  a  regal  token  of 
his  regard  to  D'Aubusson  and  his  brotherhood.  There 
is  more  about  this  "  hand  of  John  Baptist "  before  the 
end  of  the  eventful  history  of  "  The  Sea-Kings." 

This  present  of  Bajazet  was  not  the  only  gift  offered 
to  D'Aubusson.  The  Christian  princes  of  Europe  vied 
with*"  each  other  in  heaping  on  him  proofs  of  their  admi- 
ration and  affection.  Letters  of  congratulation  and  rich 
rewards  were  sent  by  the  sovereigns  of  France  and 
Germany.  The  Pope,  Innocent  VIII.,  raised  him  to 
the  dignity  of  a  Cardinal  of  the  Roman  Church,  and  en- 
titled him  "The  Buckler  of  Christianity."  King  Henry 
VII.,  of  England,  sent  him  a  letter  written  with  his  own 
hand,  and  a  gift  of  some  high-bred  English  horses. 
Thus  full  of  years  and  honor  D'Aubusson  lived  for 
thirty-three  years  after  his  famous  defence  of  Rhodes. 
He  died  upwards  of  eighty  years  of  age,  on  Friday,  the 
30th  of  June,  A.  D.  1503.  Never  was  hero  more  univer- 
sally lamented,  nor  graced  with  a  more  splendid  burial. 
His  body  lay  in  state,  dressed  in  his  robes  of  office,  with 
gloves  of  silk  on  his  hands,  and  shoes  of  golden  cloth 
upon  his  feet,  beneath  a  rich  catafalque*  of  cloth  of 
gold.  On  his  breast  lay  a  crucifix  of  gold.  At  his  right 
*  Catafalco,  ItaL,  "a  temporary  wooden  structure  decorated  with  paint- 
ings, escutcheons,  and  feathers,  and  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  choir,  or 
church,  for  the  greater  honor  of  the  bodies  of  persons  of  distinction,  at  theii 
funerals." 


90  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

hand,  upon  a  table,  were  the  emblems  of  his  Cardinal- 
ship  ;  on  his  left  were  his  arms,  his  lances,  and  his 
sword,  which  he  had  used  at  the  defence  of  the  Jews' 
rampart,  still  stained  with  the  blood  shed  upon  that 
memorable  day.  Around  the  body  stood  seven 
Knights,  one  of  whom  bare  his  Cardinal's  hat,  another 
his  Legate's  cross,  for  he  had  been  Ambassador  or 
Legate  for  the  Pope  on  several  occasions,  a  third  the 
standard  of  the  Generalissimo  of  the  Christian  League, 
of  which  he  had  been  nominated  the  chief,  and  the 
other  four  carried  pennons  of  the  arms  of  his  family  and 
of  the  Fraternity. 

The  whole  city  was  moved  as  their  illustrious  prince 
was  conveyed  to  the  tomb.  The  Greek  Patriarch  and 
all  his  clergy,  the  Archbishop  of  Rhodes  and  his  priests, 
two  hundred  citizens  of  Rhodes,  dressed  in  mourning 
and  bearing  lighted  torches,  led  the  sad  procession. 
After  these  came  the  Knights  bearing  his  banners, 
which  they  now  trailed  upon  the  ground.  Next  to 
these  was  the  body  on  the  bier,  borne  upon  the  shoul- 
ders of  the  Grand  Crosses  of  the  Order,  none  of  an  in- 
ferior grade  being  admitted  to  this  high  privilege. 
Then  followed  the  Knights  Companions  in  their  richest 
robes.  As  the  revered  body  was  lowed  into  its  last 
resting-place,  the  baton  of  his  office  and  the  golden 
spurs  of  his  Knighthood  were  broken  by  the  heralds. 
Thus  revered  in  life  and  honored  in  death  was  Pierre 


SUCCESSFUL  DEFIANCE.  91 

D'Aubusson,  the  defiant  opponent  of  the  whole  power 
of  the  Ottomans,  the  gallant  champion  of  his  island 
home  in  its  hour  of  direst  peril,  and  one  of  the  noblest, 
bravest,  and  greatest  of  the  famous  Sea-Kings  of  the 
Mediterraneaa 


CHAPTER  VI. 

DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE. 

"Mahommed's  galleys  come — the  sentinel 
Rang  from  his  steeple  tow'r  the  'larum  bell." 

FABEB'S  Knights  of  St.  John. 

WITHIN  twenty  years  of  these  splendid  obsequies  of 
Pierre  D'Aubusson,  his  island  home  was  again  invaded 
by  the  turbaned  hosts  of  the  Moslem.  The  young 
Ottoman  Sultan  Solyman,  styled  the  Magnificent  (from 
the  brilliancy  of  his  victories,  and  from  the  splendor 
with  which  he  adorned  the  city  of  Constantinople), 
the  great-grandson  of  Mohammed  II.,  believed  himself 
fated  to  be  the  avenger  of  the  defeat  of  his  ancestor, 
and  to  be  the  destroyer  of  Rhodes.  Shortly  after  his 
accession  to  the  throne  he  summoned  his  Divan,  the 
great  Council  of  the  Empire,  to  discuss  the  important 
question  of  peace  or  war.  The  solemn  meeting  of  the 
Council  was  fixed  for  Thursday,  the  13th  of  September, 
A.  D  1520.  The  morning  of  that  eventful  day  dawned 
upon  a  scene  of  stir  and  excitement  in  the  capital  of  the 
Sultan.  A  light  breeze  played  upon  the  waters  of 
the  Hellespont.  The  sun  illuminated  with  its  early 


DEFEAT   AND   DEPAETUBE. 

rays  the  gilded  domes  and  painted  minarets  situated 
on  its  shores.  The  beautiful  harbor  of  the  Golden 
Horn  was  gay  with  the  caiques  of  the  high  officers 
of  the  Serai  and  of  their  numerous  attendants.  The 
court  of  the  imperial  palace  was  lined  on  three  sides 
with  splendidly  accoutred  troups  and  Janizzaries,  while 
on  the  fourth  side  was  gathered  a  grand  company  of 
vizie^  pachas,  generals,  and  secretaries  in  the  varied 
and  rich  robes  of  ceremony  familiar  to  Eastern  courts. 

The  Council  Hall  at  Constantinople  deserves  a  brief 
description.  It  was  a  splendid  chamber,  with  a  vast 
gilded  cupola,  adorned  around  its  lower  circumference 
with  gorgeous  paintings.  At  its  upper  end  was  a 
sofa  covered  with  costly  brocade,  and  placed  on  a  dais 
supported  by  four  marble  pedestals,  and  canopied  with 
curtains  looped  with  ropes  of  fine  pearls.  In  the  wall 
of  this  magnificent  apartment  was  an  orifice  or  window 
fronted  with  a  golden  lattice,  at  which  the  Sultan  could 
sit  and  hear  the  debates  of  his  ministers  without  being 
seen.  This  noble  room*  was  provided  with  four  en- 
trances: one  at  the  upper  end,  called  the  "  Gate  of  Fe- 
licity," reserved  for  the  exclusive  use  of  the  Sultan  ; 
another  at  the  lower  end  formed  the  ordinary  mode 
of  access.  The  door  in  one  of  its  sides  was  named  the 
"  Ambassadors'  Gate,"  and  was  only  opened  to  admit 
the  representatives  from  foreign  countries,  who  sought 
•D'Ottason's  Tableaus  General  de  I' Empire  Ottoman. 


94  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

audiences  of  or  brought  presents  or  tribute  to  the 
Sultan ;  while  the  other  side  door  was  called  the  "  Gate 
of  the  Condemned,"  as  it  was  never  used  except  for 
the  sad  purpose  of  receiving  those  who  had  incurred  the 
displeasure  of  their  imperial  master,  and  who  passed 
through  this  door  into  a  courtyard,  within  which  was  a 
fountain  and  a  small  mosque,  in  which  the  unfortunate 
victims  made  the  last  ablutions  required  by  their  re- 
ligion, and  said  their  last  prayers  previous  to  their 
execution.  Below  the  throne  were  rich  sofas,  with 
handsomely  adorned  tables  or  desks  before  each,  ar- 
ranged in  rows  on  either  side  for  the  use  of  the 
members  of  the  council. 

Within  this  room  the  young  Sultan,  his  cheek  yet 
fevered  with  the  flush  of  successful  conquest  in  his  late 
capture  of  Belgrade,*  and  his  soul  yet  panting  for 
greater  renown,  in  the  wresting  from  the  Christian  Sea- 
Kings  their  maritime  dominion,  now  took  his  seat  to 
discuss  with  the  noblest,  wisest,  and  bravest  of  his 
councillors  the  future  policy  of  his  reign.  Amongst 
those  present  on  this  august  occasion  were  Mustapha 
Pacha,  married  to  the  sister  of  the  Sultan ;  Curtogli, 
a  famous  Corsair,  Admiral  of  the  Ottoman  fleet ;  Pacha 

*  Mohammed  n.  had  been  repulsed  at  Belgrade  and  at  Rhodes.  Belgrade 
was  captured  by  Solyman,  August  20, 1520 ;  and  this  conquest  increased  his 
desire  to  wipe  away,  by  the  subjugation  of  Rhodes,  the  other  great  disaster 
of  the  reign  of  his  predecessor  and  great-grandfather,  Mohammed  LL 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPAKTUBE.  95 

Achmet,  the  Captain-General  of  the  Artillery ;  the 
chief  Aga  or  Commander  of  the  Janizzaries ;  the  three 
Caziasters  or  first  Judges  in  the  land ;  the  Natoli 
and  Beglier  Beys;  Pacha  Peri,  a  brave  general,  tutor  to 
the  Sultan  in  his  youth,  and  the  second  in  command  of 
his  armies;  the  Sheik  Islam  or  head  of  the  Mufti,  the 
religious  teachers  of  Mohametanism ;  and  several  other 
pachas  and  viziers  entrusted  with  the  control  of  the 
finances,  the  collection  of  tribute,  or  the  government  of 
distant  provinces.  The  debate  was  opened  by  the  chief 
of  the  Mufti: 

"  Go,"  said  he,  "  most  illustrious  of  thy  race,  more 
distinguished  than  thy  ancestors  in  grace  of  beauty,  and 
in  fortune  of  war —  go,  gain  ineffable  glory ;  wipe  away 
the  former  dishonor  to  our  arms.  Conquer  an  island 
which  baffled  the  might  of  the  illustrious  Mohammed. 
Thy  late  success  over  the  infidel  dogs  is  an  omen  of 
future  triumphs.  The  continued  plaints  of  thy  sub- 
jects, who,  whether  as  pilgrims  to  Mecca,  or  as  seafarers 
on  the  ocean,  are  the  prey  of  these  Sea-Kings  of  the 
Mediterranean,  demand  their  destruction  at  thy  vic- 
torious hands.  Thy  religion  requires  thee  to  remove 
every  obstacle  in  the  path  to  the  sacred  shrine.  We, 
as  the  servants  of  the  great  Prophet,  give  thee  promise 
of  success.  Sultan,  go  up  and  prosper." 

The  next  to  address  the  Divan  was  an  aged  Pacha, 
who  served  under  Mohammed  II.,  and  took  part  in  hia 
unsuccessful  expedition  against  Rhodes,  A.  D.  1480 : 


96  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

"  Most  illustrious  Prince,"  said  he,  "  thy  servant  is 
but  a  dog  in  they  sight  that  he  should  lift  his  voice  in 
council.  However  grievous  it  may  be  to  hear  without 
the  power  to  relieve  the  complaints  of  thy  power,  yet 
discretion  is  often  the  best  part  of  valor.  Strife  once 
commenced,  like  water  poured  out,  cannot  be  con- 
trolled. May  thine  arm  ever  be  victories,  and  thy  face 
white ;  but  there  are  no  small  difficulties  to  be  over- 
come. The  walls  of  that  detested  island  are  strong, 
and  the  brave  men  behind  them  are  better  than  strong 
ramparts.  Their  own  valor,-  the  attachment  and  patriot- 
ism of  their  people,  the  remembrance  of  their  former 
success,  will  animate  their  hearts,  and  make  them  for- 
midable opponents  and  foemen.  A  little  spark  will 
cause  a  great  conflagration.  An  attack  on  Rhodes  will 
infallibly  lead  to  a  league  of  the  Christian  powers. 
The  sovereigns  of  Europe  will  combine  against  the 
distinguished  armies  of  your  empire.  The  Soudan  of 
Egypt  and  the  other  tributaries  lately  conquered  by 
the  might  of  your  illustrious  father,  our  late  master, 
Selim  (may  his  shadow  never  grow  less),  will  revolt 
and  lend  their  aid  to  thy  foes.  The  obstacles  to  a 
successful  issue  to  thy  expedition  will  be  greater  than 
ever  thy  puissant  arm  can  achieve.  Be  wise  in  time, 
Sultan!  Abstain  from  a  conquest  which  will  at  the 
.best  be  but  a  conquest  to  thy  cost." 

Mustapha  Pacha,  as  brother-in-law  of  Solyman,  cog- 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  97 

nizant'  of  his  secret  wishes,  and,  as  Commander-in- 
Chief  of  the  army,  desirous  himself  of  war,  replied  to 
this  speech  with  the  adroitness  of  a  courtier  and  the 
spirit  of  a  soldier.  "  Most  illustrious  sovereign  and 
lord !  The  snows  of  age,  however  respected,  oftet 
accompany  a  heart  too  chilled  to  realize  the  strong 
arm  or  to  appreciate  the  unflinching  resolution  of  the 
young?""  Be  not  deterred,  I  pray  thee,  from  thy  noble 
purpose  by  any  ignoble  considerations.  Thine  arm 
has  already  been  victorious.  Thy  fleets  and  armies 
are  numerous  enough  to  cover  the  soil  of  this  cursed 
isle,  and  to  eat  up,  as  the  ox  licketh  the  herb  of  the 
field,  this  handful  of  knights  and  soldiers.  Nor  is 
there  cause  to  fear  the  formation  of  a  Christian  league 
or  crusade  against  thy  mightiness.  These  Christian 
kings  hate  each  other  too  much  to  unite  in  an  ex- 
pedition against  thee.  Surely  thy  late  capture  of  Bel- 
grade was  a  greater  grief  to  this  sceptred  soldier, 
Charles  V.,  than  any  attack  on  these  French  knights 
can  be,  and  yet  wagged  he  not  tongue  nor  moved  a 
foot  to  impede  thee.  The  voice  of  the  Mufti  is  the  will 
of  fate !  Thanks  to  the  good  sword  of  thy  father 
Selim  (may  his  shadow  never  be  less),  thy  empire 
now  is  twice  as  large  as  that  of  thy  great  ancestor, 
Mohammed  II. ;  and  shall  these  few  Christian  rebels 
continue  to  beard  thy  power,  to  capture  thy  ships,  to 
molest  thy  commerce,  to  interrupt  thy  path  from  one 
7 


98  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

portion  of  thy  dominions  to  another,  to  stop  thy  pil- 
grims on  their  sacred  mission,  to  provide  a  shelter  for 
thy  fugitive  slaves,  to  give  encouragement  to  thy  dis- 
affected tributaries,  and  to  throw  dust  on  the  insti- 
tutions of  Mohammed  himself,  thy  great  prophet  and 
precursor!  The  conquest  of  this  Rhodes  has  become 
a  necessity  for  thine  empire.  It  cannot  be  delayed. 
Sultan,  rise  to  the  greatness  of  thine  own  thoughts, 
to  the  emulation  of  thy  father's  fame,  to  the  wiping 
away  a  disgrace  yet  attached  to  our  armies,  and  to  the 
just  revenge  of  the  injuries  done  unto  thy  people.  The 
recollection  of  past  wrongs,  the  voice  of  religion,  the 
promised  benediction  of  the  Mufti,  call  thee  to  obey  the 
noble  aspirations  of  thine  own  nature,  and  to  revenge 
thee  of  thine  enemies ! " 

This  speech  carried  conviction  to  every  heart.  The 
voice  of  the  Divan  declared  for  war.  Solyman  pre- 
pared a  mighty  army,  gathered  from  the  numerous 
tributary  nations  of  his  empire.  He  mustered  160,000 
fighting  men,  and  60,000  Hungarian  peasants  for  servile 
works,  as  laborers  in  the  trenches,  or  as  hewers  of  wood 
and  drawers  of  water.  He  paid  the  utmost  attention 
to  his  train  of  artillery,  and  collected  66  guns  of  various 
sizes  and  calibre.  His  fleet  and  transports  made  up  a 
flotilla  of  400  vessels  of  all  kinds. 

The  Sea-Kings  were  fully  aware  of  the  true  position 
of  affairs.  They  well  knew  the  increased  power  and 


DEFEAT   AND  DEPARTURE.  99 

dominion  of  their  hereditary  foemen,  which  now  pressed 
and  hemmed  them  in  on  every  side.  They  could  ex- 
pect little  or  no  help  from  the  sovereigns  of  France  and 
Germany,  now  engaged  in  an  unhappy  internecine  war- 
fare among  themselves.  They  did  not,  however,  abate 
one  jot  of  heart  or  hope,  but  resolved  to  trust  to  their 
own  good  swords  and  brave  deeds  for  a  second  effectual 
deliverance.  Their  Grand  Master,  the  aged  Caretto, 
the  last  surviving  captain  in  the  former  siege,  had  died 
in  the  very  year  of  Solyman's  accession  to  the  throne, 
and  a  new  chief,  Villiers  de  Lisle  Adam,  had  been 
elected  in  his  place,  January  31,  A.  D.  1521.  Equal  to 
their  former  great  leader,  Pierre  D'Aubusson,  in  sol- 
dierly experience,  personal  courage,  and  honest  devo- 
tion to  duty,  and  superior  to  him  in  piety  and  prudence, 
Lisle  Adam  proved  himself  to  be  be  one  raised  up  by  a 
kind  providence  for  this  great  emergency,  and  to  be 
worthy  of  the  confidence  of  his  illustrious  brotherhood, 
as  a  chief  well  fitted  to  direct  their  councils  and  desti- 
nies in  this  their  day  of  renewed  trial  and  disaster. 

A  singular  series  of  mishaps  befel  Lisle  Adam  on  his 
voyage  to  assume  the  functions  of  his  high  office. 
Three  out  of  the  four  great  elements  of  Nature,  accord- 
ing to  the  philosophy  of  that  day,  might  have  seemed 
to  the  superstitious  to  have  conspired  for  his  destruc- 
tion. First  of  all,  a  fire  broke  out  in  his  ship  as  he  was 
off  the  coast  of  Nice,  and  burnt  the  sails  and  cordage, 


100  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

and  at  one  time  threatened  to  gain  such  mastery  over 
the  vessel,  that  the  soldiers  and  sailors  on  board  pre- 
pared to  throw  themselves  into  the  sea  that  they  might 
swim  to  the  shore,  or  to  the  galleys  forming  the  convoy. 
Lisle  Adam,  by  his  presence  of  mind,  saved  himself  and 
crew.  Peremptorily  forbidding  any  one  to  leave  the 
ship,  he  gave  orders  with  such  calmness  and  confidence, 
that  the  fire  was  extinguished.  His  next  peril  was 
by  water:  a  violent  storm  nearly  wrecked  his  ship. 
The  air,  also,  seemed  equally  adverse  to  him,  as,  during 
the  storm,  lightning  struck  the  ship,  and,  entering  the 
state  cabin,  struck  his  sword  without  injury  to  the 
scabbard.  Nor  were  these  his  least  misfortunes ;  for, 
having  put  into  Syracuse  to  refit,  he  heard  that  Cur- 
togli,  the  Turkish  Admiral,  was  lying  off  Cape  Malea, 
with  a  powerful  fleet,  to  intercept  him.  With  a  happy 
mixture  of  boldness  and  good  fortune,  he  passed  safely 
through  his  cruisers  during  the  night. 

Lisle  Adam,  on  his  arrival  at  Rhodes,  took  every  pre- 
caution for  the  safety  of  the  city.  He  carefully  looked 
after  his  walls,  provisions,  and  magazines.  He  sent 
trusty  agents  to  buy  corn  and  wheat  in  Sicily,  then, 
as  of  old,  the  great  granery  of  the  Mediterranean  towns, 
to  purchase  wine  in  Crete,  and,  the  most  important 
task  of  all,  to  hire  mercenaries,  or  to  obtain  volunteers 
for  his  army.  The  Governor  of  Crete,  though  the 
island  was  subject  to  the  republic  of  Venice,  through 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  101 

fear  of  offending  Solyman,  issued  a  proclamation  prohibit- 
ing the  inhabitants  from  rendering  any  assistance  to  the 
Hospitallers;  but  Bozio,  the  agent  commissioned  by  the 
Grand  Master,  managed  so  well  that  he  induced  a  mer- 
chant, Bonaldi  by  name,  to  bring  to  Rhodes  a  cargo 
of  wine  destined  for  Constantinople,  hired  500  men, 
whom  he  embarked  on  board  his  ship  under  the  dis- 
guiserof  merchants  and  sailors,  and  persuaded  a  cele- 
brated engineer,  Gabriel  Martenegro,  to  transfer  his 
service  from  the  flag  of  the  Venetian  Republic  to  the 
standard  of  St.  John.  When  the  Governor  of  Crete 
discovered  the  trick  that  had  been  played  on  him, 
and  the  evasion  of  his  commands,  he  sent  out  two  ships, 
with  orders  to  bring  Martenegro  back,  dead  or  alive. 
Bozio,  finding  himself  to  be  hard  pressed,  escaped  by 
a  stratagem.  He  took  down  his  mast,  furled  his 
sails,  shipped  his  oars,  and  anchored  close  to  the  cliffs. 
He  then  covered  the  ship's  sides  with  cloths  as  near  to 
the  color  of  the  cliff  as  possible,  and  eventually  escaped 
after  sunset.  His  danger  was  not  yet  over  ;  for  he  fell 
in  with  the  Ottoman  fleet  during  the  night,  and  only 
passed  through  them  in  safety  by  his  familiarity  with 
the  Greek  language,  by  his  use  of  which  the  captains  in 
command  supposed  his  ship  to  be  one  of  the  convoy - 
under  their  protection. 

Martenegro  was  received  at  Rhodes  with  the  greatest 
enthusiasm.     He  was  admitted  to  the  highest  honors  of 


102  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

the  Order,  and  entrusted  with  the  exclusive  command 
of  the  artillery,  and  with  the  superintendence  of  the 
siege.  He  devoted  himself  at  once  to  his  task,  and 
increased  the  strength  of  the  fortress  by  new  rav- 
elins, fresh  openings  in  the  walls,  additional  casemates, 
improved  scarps  and  curtains,  and  by  a  better  arrange- 
ment of  the  points  of  firing,  rendering  support  to 
each  other  throughout  the  circuit  of  the  fortifica- 
tions. Lisle  Adam,  assisted  by  his 'counsels  and  encour- 
aged by  his  presence,  continued  his  operations.  He 
reviewed  his  Knights,  and  found  their  number  to  be 
600,  with  4,500  squires  and  men-at-arms.  To  these 
he  allotted  the  charge  of  the  different  bastions  and 
ramparts,  according  to  the  old-established  custom, 
which  assigned  particular  posts  to  the  care  of  each  sepa- 
rate nation,  and  yet  reserved  from  their  number  five 
different  companies,  four  of  which,  under  trusty 
Knights,  were  to  meet  any  special  emergency  of  at- 
tack or  defence  as  it  might  arise,  and  the  fifth  was 
to  act  as  his  own  body-guard  —  a  sort  of  forlorn 
hope,  to  assist  at  posts  of  pre-eminent  danger.  The 
standard  of  the  Church  and  the  banner  of  the  Order 
were  placed  in  the  hands  of  two  French-  knights, 
while  the  chiefs  own  pennon  was  entrusted  to  the 
custody  of  a  young  Englishman,  Henry  Hansel.  Lisle 
Adam  further  arranged  the  townsmen  of  Rhodes  into 
companies  of  pikeman  and  archers,  and  formed  the 
peasants  into  bands  of  laborers  and  pioneers. 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  103 

The  lists  on  either  side  being  thus  set,  we  may  lift 
the  curtain,  and  exhibit  the  great  drama  of  the  fight  to 
be  presented  to  our  view.  On  Wednesday,  the  26th  of 
June,  the  mighty  armament  of  the  Turks  appeared 
in  full  sight  of  the  inhabitants  of  Rhodes.  Curtogli, 
the  Admiral  in  command,  deemed  it  prudent  to  avoid 
the  fortress,  and  to  disembark  his  troops  in  a  small 
bay  about  six  miles  from  the  town.  The  Sea-Kings 
wer*e  two  few  m  number  to  incur  the  risk  of  attack- 
ing forces  at  that  distance  from  their  walls.  The  actual 
landing  was  unopposed.  The  early  incidents  of  the 
contests  were,  however,  decidedly  adverse  to  the 
Turks.  The  cavalry  of  the  Knights,  by  their  bold 
and  frequent  charges,  materially  interrupted  the  first 
preparation  of  the  entrenchments  and  the  moving  from 
the  ships  of  the  heavier  pieces  of  ordnance ;  and  as 
the  Turkish  soldiers  were  disposed  to  judge  of  the  final 
issue  of  events  by  the  early  auguries,  the  whole  host  be- 
came dispirited  and  disinclined  to  proceed  with  the 
war.  Such,  indeed,  was  their  evil  plight,  from  the  fire 
of  the  fortress,  the  determined  onsets  of  the  Knights, 
the  want  of  shelter  and  food,  combined  with  a  distrust 
of  their  youthful  commander,  Pacha  Mustapha,  that 
several  Janizzary  regiments  broke  into  open  mutiny, 
and  demanded  to  be  led*  homewards.  The  tidings  of 
this  disastrous  turn  of  affairs  were  conveyed  to  Soly- 
man,  who  hastened  to  assume  the  command  of  his  army 


104  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

in  person,  and  to  quell  with  his  presence  this  spirit 
of  revolt.  The  arrival  of  the  Snltan  was  announced  by 
the  roar  of  artiller}',  and  by  the  clang  of  drum,  gong, 
cymbal,  tambour,  and  other  noisy  instruments  so  pleas- 
ant to  the  ears  of  Eastern  soldiers.  On  the  next  day  a 
singular  scene  was  exhibited  in  the  Ottoman  camp. 
Solyman,  surrounded  by  a  magnificent  array  of  his 
splendidly-equipped  officers,  attended  by  his  bodj-- 
guard  of  Mamelukes,  and  accompanied  by  the  utmost 
display  and  lustre  of  military  pomp,  proceeded  on  his 
charger  to  a  gilded  and  curtained  throne  erected  for  his 
use.  He  summoned  before  him  the  troops  of  whose 
conduct  he  had  reason  to  complain,  and  bade  them 
come  without  their  arms  or  military  accoutrements. 
He  then  encircled  them  with  the  15,000  new  troops 
which  had  accompanied  him  on  his  landing,  and  thus 
addressed  them,  with  a  stern  and  displeased  counte- 
nance : — 

"I  would  that  I  could  call  you  soldiers,  for  I  would 
not  then  have  taken  from  you  your  arms.  But  I 
cannot.  You  are  only  slaves  —  slaves  in  fear,  and 
women  in  cowardice.  Think  you  that  your  mere 
presence  on  these  shores  will  so  terrify  your  foes  that 
they  will  lift  their  hands  in  entreaty,  and  come  out 
to  you  with  their  feet  in  irons?  Know  you  not  that  we 
fight  the  bravest  heroes  in  Christendom,  men  of  mettle, 
trained  from  their  youth  in  arms,  bold  and  fierce  aa 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  105 

lions,  and  thirsty  as  tigers  for  Mohammedan  blood,  not 
knowing  how  to  yield  —  the  more  courageous  the  more 
they  are  attacked  ?  Suppose  you,  base  and  degenerate 
slaves !  that  you  can  possibly  conquer,  if  you  fly  before 
you  have  seen  your  enemy?  —  as  I  hear  you  would 
have  done,  had  not  the  sea  prevented  you.  But  before 
I  tolerate  such  disgraceful  conduct,  I  will  inflict  on  you 
a  punishment  so  severe  that  the  greatest  cowards  shall 
henceforth  he  deterred  from  following  your  example!  " 

Scarcely  had  he  finished  this  oration,  when  his  armed 
soldiers,  in  reply  to  a  signal  from  him,  drew  their 
swords,  and  pointed  them  at  the  breasts  of  their  com- 
panions as  if  they  would  slay  them.  The  unhappy  mu- 
tineers, at  the  sight  of  the  naked  scimitars,  threw  them- 
selves on  their  knees,  and  with  earnest  exclamations  im- 
plored the  compassion  of  the  Sultan.  The  pachas  and 
viziers  also  approached  the  throne,  entreated  for  mercy, 
and  offered  to  pledge  their  lives  that  the  imperial 
clemency  would  not  be  bestowed  in  vain,  but  that 
the  mutineers,  if  pardoned,  would  atone  for  their  of- 
fence with  their  blood.  Then  said  the  Sultan,  "  I 
grant  their  lives  to  your  entreaties.  Let  them  go 
and  show  their  repentance  on  the  bastions  and  bodies 
of  their  foes." 

The  presence  of  Solyman  imparted  greater  energy 
and  system  to  the  attack.  He  took  up  his  quarters 
on  the  north  side  of  the  town,  in  a  central  position,  not 


106  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

far  from  St.  Stephen's  Hill.  The  whole  month  of  July 
was  devoted  to  strictly  siege  operations,  in  making 
entrenchments,  cutting  ditches,  erecting  batteries  for 
the  cannon,  and  more  particularly  in  constructing  two 
great  mounds,  or  "  cavaliers,"  as  they  were  called, 
made  of  earth  and  rubbish,  strong  enough  to  carry 
large  guns,  and  high  enough  to  dominate  over  the  walls 
and  ramparts  of  the  fortress.  One  of  these  mounds 
was  placed  opposite  the  bastion  of  Italy,  in  the  quarter 
occupied  by  the  troops  of  Pacha  Peri ;  and  the  other 
was  located  between  the  bastions  of  Spain  and  Au- 
vergne,  in  the  encampment  of  Pacha  Achmet.  The 
peasants  of  Hungary  and  of  the  provinces  assisted 
in  the  preparation  of  these  works,  and,  as  they  were 
constructed  within  the  reach  of  the  guns  of  the  fortress, 
no  little  carnage  was  wrought  among  them.  Solyman 
took  no  heed  of  this, 

"  Nor  does  he  pause  with  horrent  brow  to  rate, 
"What  millions  die  that  Cassar  may  be  great"  * 

The  only  damage  done  during  this  month  to  the  be- 
sieged was  the  destruction  of  the  elevated  cupola  of  the 
Cathedral-church  of  St.  John,  which  had  hitherto 
served  as  an  excellent  post  of  observation. 

The  month  of  September  inaugurated  an  unceasing 
succession  of  onsets  and  assaults,  gallantly  made,  but 
successfully    resisted.      The    first    serious    assault    was 
»  Campbell,  Pleasures  of  Hope. 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  107 

made  in  the  early  part  of  the  month  on  the  English 
bastion.  A  portion  of  this  had  fallen  down  from  the 
explosion  of  a  mine.  The  Turks,  in  their  first  onset, 
gained  the  breach  and  planted  their  ladders,  hoping  to 
effect  an  entrance  to  the  bastion.  The  Knights,  having 
recovered  the  surprise  occasioned  by  the  suddenness  of 
the  explosion,  swarmed  over  the  bastion  and  charged 
with  #a-  grand  fusillade  from  arquebus  and  grenade. 
Lisle  Adam  was  in  St.  John's  Church  at  his  devotions, 
but  hearing  the  noise  of  the  explosion,  just  as  the  priest 
commenced  the  Psalm,  "  Deus,  in  adjutorium  meum 
intende,"  "  Lord,  be  Thou  my  helper,"  he  exclaimed, 
"  I  accept  the  omen ; "  and  then,  addressing  his  body- 
guard, he  said,  "  Come,  sirs,  we  must  exchange  the 
service  of  our  praises  for  the  sacrifice  of  our  lives." 

"  He  said:  and  on  the  rampart  heights  arrayed 
His  trusty  warriors,  firm  but  undismayed; 
Firm-paced  and  slow  a  horrid  front  they  form, 
Still  as  the  breeze,  but  dreadful  as  the  storm."  * 

The  energy  of  the  attack  of  Lisle  Adam  and  of  his 
brave  warriors  was  attested  by  the  retreat  of  his  oppo- 
nents. Pacha  Mustapha,  who  saw  from  the  trenches 
the  sudden  flight  and  consternation  of  his  soldiers, 
rushed  forward,  sword  in  hand,  and,  in  his  passion, 
cut  down  the  foremost  fugitives,  and  tried  to  impress 
upon  the  others  that  they  had  no  more  safety  in 
flight  than  in  the  breach.  The  fight  was  renewed 
*  Campbell,  Pleasures  of  Hope. 


108  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KINGS. 

under  the  immediate  advance  of  Mustapha.  Both 
parties  seemed  equally  determined.  Fire  and  sword 
did  their  sanguinary  work.  Man  contended  with  man, 
and  the  worse  and  weaker  soldier  fell  a  victim  to  the 
poignard  of  his  adversary.  The  Turks  at  last,  over- 
powered by  the  bullets,  grenades,  stones,  and  liquid 
fire  of  their  opponents,  turned  their  backs  and  fled. 
This  fearful  encounter  cost  Solyman  3,000  men.  The 
Sea-Kings  suffered  rather  in  the  quality  than  in  the 
number  of  their  slain,  and  had  to  lament  on  this 
occasion  the  deaths  of  Chevalier  D'Argillemont,  the 
chief  in  command  of  the  galleys,  of  a  brave  captain  of 
artillery,  and  of  the  youthful  and  devoted  Henry 
Mansel,  the  brave  standard-bearer  to  Lisle  Adam. 

The  Turkish  generals,  regardless  of  human  life,  and 
only  anxious  to  please  their  imperial  master  by  securing 
the  capture  of  the  fortress,  renewed  these  assaults  day 
by  day  at  this  period  of  the  siege.  The  next  great  at- 
tack was  made  by  Pacha  Peri  on  the  bastion  and  ram- 
part entrusted  to  the  charge  and  custody  of  the  Knights 
of  Italy.  This  veteran  commander,  the  most  experi- 
enced of  the  Sultan's  generals,  who  had  led  his  troops 
to  victory  in  many  a  campaign,  and  who,  in  spite 
of  his  years,  was  as  active  and  zealous  in  his  sovereign's 
cause  as  any  of  his  younger  companions,  combined  pru- 
dence and  precaution  with  his  courage.  He  concealed 
a  large  body  of  soldiers  behind  the  "  cavalier,"  or  large 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  109 

mound  which  had  been  erected  in  the  encampment,  and 
led  them  to  an  assault  at  daybreak  on  Friday,  the  13th 
day  of  September.  The  advance  of  his  veteran  soldiers 
was  so  rapid  that  he  surprised  and  killed  the  sentinels, 
and  obtained  a  footing  on  the  bastion. 

"  The  storm  prevails:  the  bastion  yields  away; 
Bursts  the  wild  cry  of  horror  and  dismay."  * 

Btttf  the  Knights  of  Italy,  though  surprised,  were 
no  craven  defenders  of  their  post.  Enraged  at  the 
presence  of  their  enemies,  they  rushed  upon  them 
with  the  utmost  impetuosity.  The  fight  was  long  and 
desperate.  Peri  continually  sent  forward  fresh  troops, 
and  while  he  issued  his  orders  a  cannon-ball  killed,  by 
his  side,  the  Governor  of  Negropont,  a  young  pacha  of 
tried  valor,  and  an  especial  favorite  of  the  Sultan. 
Burning  to  avenge  his  death,  Peri  led  on  his  veterans  in 
person.  Meanwhile  Lisle  Adam,  being  informed  of  the 
attack,  had  come  with  his  chosen  company  of  Knights 
and  men-at-arms  to  support  the  defenders  of  the  bas- 
tion :  "  Come,"  said  he  to  his  friends  ;  "  drive  we  back 
these  Paynim ;  we  have  no  cause  to  fear  men  whom  we 
make  to  fear  us  every  day."  At  the  same  time  he 
suited  his  action  to  the  word,  and  rushed  forward 
against  the  .be,  pike  in  hand.  The  chivalry  of  Italy, 
animated  by  the  presence  of  their  chief,  performed 
prodigies  of  valor,  and  drove  back  the  veterans  of  Peri 
*  Campbell,  Pleasures  of  Hope. 


110  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

in  confusion  from  the  walls.  The  victory  was  dearly 
purchased  by  the  loss  of  many  of  their  nation,  but 
Rhodes  was  saved  for  that  day  by  their  valor  and 
intrepidity. 

The  bastion  and  rampart  committed  to  the  special 
charge  of  the  English  soldiery  had  already  been  the 
scene  of  the  severest  conflict  hitherto  endured  in  the 
siege,  but  now  they  were  called  upon  to  resist  a  far 
more  formidable  and  organized  attack. 

Mustapha  Pacha,  the  Commander-in-Chief,  whose 
camp  fronted  the  English  wall,  determined  for  a  second 
time  to  avail  himself  of  the  breach  made  in  this  part  of 
the  defences  by  the  explosion  of  the  mine,  and  obtain 
by  it  an  entrance  to  the  fortress.  He  took  Pacha 
Achmet,  who  occupied  the  post  next  to  himself  in  the 
leaguer  round  the  city,  into  his  councils,  and  prepared 
with  him  a  concerted  plan  of  operations.  The  two 
generals  agreed  that  the  Grand  Vizier  Mustapha  should 
assail  the  English  wall,  and  that  at  the  same  time 
Achmet  should  on  his  part  attack  the  neighboring  bas- 
tions of  Spain  and  Auvergne,  opposite  his  quarters. 
The  17th  day  of  September  was  chosen  for  carrying  out 
these  combined  operations.  Mustapha  selected  five  of 
his  bravest  battalions  for  this  duty.  Placing  himself  at 
their  head,  he  issued  from  the  protection  of  his  trenches, 
mounted  the  heaps  of  rubbish  caused  by  the  ruined 
part  of  the  bastion,  gained  for  the  second  time  the 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  Ill 

ascent  of  the  breach,  and,  in  spite  of  all  the  grenades 
and  arrows  of  the  besieged,  reached  the  ramparts. 
They  could  not,  however,  hold  their  advantage :  a  com- 
pany of  English  soldiers,  under  the  command  of  Sir 
John  Buch,*  rushed  from  the  platform  of  the  rampart, 
and,  supported  by  Prejan,  the  Grand  Prior  of  St. 
Giles,  and  by  a  gallant  German  Knight,  Christopher 
Valdfier,  and  their  squires  and  men-at-arms,  made  so 
furious  a  charge,  that  the  Turks  fled  panic-stricken  from 
the  post.  Mustapha,  more  brave  as  a  soldier  than  suc- 
cessful as  a  commander,  exerted  himself  to  the  utmost. 
He  threw  himself  into  the  midst  of  the  melee,  slew  a 
Knight  with  his  own  sword,  and  if  the  soldiers  had 
equaled  their  leader  in  spirit  and  determination,  the  re- 
sult of  the  conflict  might  have  been  different*  This 
success  of  the  English  Knights  was  dearly  purchased : 
Sir  John  Buch,  Christopher  Valdner,  and  other  brave 
commanders  were  numbered  among  the  dead. 

The  Pacha  Achmet  was  equally  unsuccessful.  The 
troops  selected  for  the  assault  found  a  large  body  of 
Spaniards  awaiting  them,  and  were  met  with  a  murder- 
ous fire  from  the  large  guns  of  the  fortress,  under  which 
they  reeled,  and  fled  to  the  cover  of  their  trenches. 
The  loss  of  the  Turks  in  these  combined  attacks  ex- 
ceeded 3,000  soldiers. 

The  Sultan,  alarmed  at  this  slaughter  of  his  troops, 

•Porter's  Knight  of  Malta,  vol.  i.,  p.  457.    Vertot,  vol.  u.,  p.  483. 


112  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

and  irritated  at  the  slow  progress  of  his  generals,  sum* 
moned  a  grand  council  of  war.  Various  plans  were 
proposed ;  when  at  last  Mustapha,  who  had  so  strongly 
advocated  the  war,  and  who  was  proportionally  the 
most  vexed  at  its  ill  success,  animated  alike  by  dis- 
appointment at  his  last  failure,  and  by  his  desire  for 
an  opportunity  of  retrieving  his  disasters  by  a  glorious 
success,  rose  in  the  council,  and  thus  expressed  his 
opinion : 

""  It  appears  to  me,"  he  said,  "  that  we  carry  on  this 
war  just  in  the  way  our  enemies  would  most  wish. 
Our  generosity  makes  their  forces  equal  to  ours.  We 
attack  one  post  at  a  time,  and  so  give  these  Chris- 
tian Knights  the  opportunity  of  concentrating  all  their 
strength  on  one  point  of  defence.  If  we  gave,  as  we 
might  easily  do,  since  our  army  environs  the  whole 
fortress,  the  assault  in  many  places  at  once,  and  at- 
tacked the  numerous  breaches  we  have  made  at  one 
and  the  same  time,  then  would  the  besieged  be  pre- 
vented from  rendering,  as  they  now  do,  mutual  aid  and 
assistance  to  each  other ;  and  our  fair  standards  of  the 
Crescent  would  soon  float  over  its  walls  in  triumph,  in 
the  place  of  the  hated  symbol  of  the  Cross." 

Solyman  highly  approved  of  the  suggestion,  and  at 
once  named  Tuesday,  the  24th  of  September,  as  the 
day  for  a  general  assault.  A  proclamation  was  made 
throughout  the  camp.  "To-morrow  is  the  assault 


DEFEAT  AXD  DEPAETUBE.  113 

The  stones  of  the  fortress  and  the  soil  of  the  land  are 
the  Sultan's  ,  the  lives  and  goods  of  the  inhabitants  are 
the  soldiers'."  This  promise  of  pillage  was  given  to 
encourage  the  army.  Preparation  was  made  for  the 
assault  by  a  general  continuous  bombardment  of  the 
town  and  fortress,  for  the  space  of  two  days  and 
nights.  The  batteries  were  more  particularly  pointed 
at  thePEnglish,  Spanish,  and  Italian  bastions,  which 
had  been  the  theatres  of  the  preceding  assaults,  and 
where  the  breaches  in  the  walls  seemed  the  most 
practicable.  The  night  before  the  assault  Lisle  Adam 
went  round  in  person  to  every  post  on  the  whole  circuit 
of  the  walls,'  and,  with  a  few  manly  and  spirited  words 
of  counsel  and  encouragement,  exhorted  them  to  resist 
to  the  utmost  the  meditated  attack.  Nor  were  his 
words  in  vain.  The  chevaliers  and  esquires  assured 
him,  by  their  bright  countenances  and  their  burning 
words,  that  his  confidence  in  their  courage  and  deter- 
mination would  not  be  betrayed  nor  misplaced. 

At  dawn  on  the  appointed  day  the  whole  artillery 
of  the  Turks  belched  forth  a  general  salute,  partly  to 
distract  the  attention  of  the  besieged,  and  partly  to 
cover  with  its  cloud  of  smoke  the  advancing  battalions. 
The  attack  was  made  simultaneously  on  four  separate 
points :  the  English,  Spanish,  and  Italian  bastions,  and 
on  the  platform  and  wall  held  by  the  Knights  of 
Provence.  The  Sultan  was  a  witness  of  the  battle 
8 


114  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

from  a  lofty  scaffold,  erected  on  St.  Stephen's  Hill,  from 
which  he  was  able  to  discern  the  whole  movement  of 
his  troops.  On  that  day  he  looked  down  upon  a  sight 
fit  to  make  angels  weep ;  and  yet  on  a  spectacle  too 
often  renewed  since  by  the  pride,  ambition,  or  inhuman- 
ity of  man.  The  cannon  of  the  fortress  opened  on  the 
thick  throng  of  the  Turks,  and  mowed  great  gaps  in 
their  ranks.  Their  progress  is  not  hindered.  Intent 
only  on  their  prey,  and  heedless  of  danger,  they  heard, 
but  noted  not, 

"  The  death-shot  hissing  from  afar, 
The  shock,  the  shout,  the  groan  of  war,"  * 

but  rushed  onward  to  the  assault  with  undaunted  reso- 
lution. They  omitted  no  effort  to  gain  their  object. 
Their  bravest  Janizzaries  mounted  the  breaches,  and 
contended  with  their  iron  maces  in  hand-to-hand  en- 
counters with  the  Knights,  while  their  arquebusiers 
fired  at  any  foeman  not  engaged  in  the  melee, 

"  And,  forming  far  in  dusky  rows, 
A  thousand  archers  bend  their  bows."  t 

The  Knights  on  their  part  showed  the  greatest  intre- 
pidity, and  their  men-at-arms,  arquebusiers,  or  bowmen 
incredible  firmness.  The  battle  raged  round  the  bas- 
tions of  Auvergne,  Spain  and  Italy.  But  the  English 
post  became  for  the  third  time  the  arena  of  the  blood- 
iest and  fiercest  fight  in  all  that  eventful  day.  This 

«  Byron,  Giaour.  t  Bowles,  Siege  of  Acre, 


DEFEAT  AND   DEPARTURE.  115 

bastion  was  at  once  the  weakest,  the  most  fiercely  as- 
sailed, and  the  most  desperately  defended.  The  Eng- 
lish garrison  resorted  to  every  known  method  of  re- 
sistance. They  threw  down  in  obstinate  hand-to-hand 
combats  the  scaling-ladders  of  the  assailants,  rolled 
down  on  them  huge  masses  of  stone,  fired  on  them 
with  crossbow  and  arquebus,  poured  on  them  boiling  oil 
and  flaming  grenade.  Lisle  Adam  was  found,  as  was 
his  wont,  in  this  chief  post  of  danger.  His  presence 
imparted  new  courage  to  the  defenders,  while  their  an- 
tagonists proved  themselves  the  bravest  of  the  brave 
men  in  that  mighty  host.  In  the  midst  of  the  conflict, 
in  their  desire  to  gain  the  bastion  so  hotly  contested, 
they  brought  lofty  cranes  on  wheels  to  the  foot  of  the 
walls,  on  which  huge  baskets  were  suspended,  by  which 
the  soldiers  of  the  Sultan  tried  to  throw  themselves1 
upon  the  seething  mass  of  their  foes  upon  the  ram- 
parts, only  to  miss  their  purpose  and  to  fall,  bloody 
and  maimed  corpses,  to  the  bottom  of  the  ramparts. 
The  Turks  at  last  gave  ground,  on  which  an  Aga, 
much  beloved  by  the  soldiers,  led  them  back  again  to 
the  attack.  He  succeeded  once  more  in  mounting  the 
breach,  and  in  placing  a  standard  on  its  summit,  when 
a  shot  from  an  arquebus  killed  him  on  the  spot.  His 
death,  instead  of  daunting  the  ardor  of  his  men,  in- 
flamed them  with  a  desire  for  vengeance. 

"  Low  murmuring  sounds  along  their  banners  fly: 

Revenge  or  death,  the  watchword  and  reply."  * 

*  Campbell,  Pleasures  of  Hope. 


116  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS.     • 

They  rushed  madly  on  their  opponents,  content  to  die 
if  they  killed  an  enemy.  All  their  impetuosity  could 
not  avail.  An  equal  enthusiasm  animated  the  be- 
sieged, and  at  last  their  perseverance  and  bull-dog  en- 
durance were  rewarded  in  the  rout  and  retreat  of  the 
Turks  from  their  wall. 

In  the  meantime,  other  conflicts  of  an  equally  vital 
and  exciting  character  were  being  waged  round  the 
posts  of  the  French,  Spanish,  and  Italian  quarters. 
On  all  sides  the  most  spirited  contests,  marked  by  the 
most  unforgiving  slaughter,  prevailed.  The  courage 
of  the  garrison  was  shared  in  and  supported  by  the 
loyalty  and  enthusiasm  of  the  townsmen  and  inhabi- 
tants. The  priests,  and  women,  even,  took  part  in  the 
contest.  It  is  related  that  one  woman,  on  her  husband 
being  slain,  arrayed  herself  in  the  helmet  and  tunic 
stained  with  his  blood,  and,  armed  with  his  sword, 
rushed  into  the  thickest  of  the  melee,  and  having  re- 
venged her  husband  by  the  death  of  more  than  one  of 
his  foes,  died  herself  from  the  wounds  received  in  the 
fight.  Against  such  sentiments  and  such  enthusiasm 
there  was  no  chance  of  success ;  and,  after  witnessing 
for  six  long  hours  the  noble  efforts  of  his  soldiers,  and 
the  still  nobler  resistance  of  their  opponents,  the  Sul- 
tan himself  gave  the  signal  for  the  general  retreat  of  his 
forces.  Thus  the  vast  army  of  100,000  men,  which 
had  moved  onward  in  the  morning  decked  out  with  all 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  117 

the  pomp  and  splendor  of  Eastern  chivalry,  under  a 
certain  conviction  that  they  should  that  day  take  pos- 
session of  Rhodes,  defended  merely  by  its  broken  walls, 
half-ruined-bastions,  and  gaping  breaches  occupied  by  a 
handful  of  wearied  soldiers,  found  to  its  cost  that  its 
labor  was  in  vain,  and  that  really  brave  men  never 
knew  when  they  were  beaten,  nor  how  to  yield. 

Thprage  of  Solyman  at  this  most  unexpected  disap- 
pointment knew  no  bounds.  On  the  morning  subse- 
quent to  this  disastrous  repulse  he  summoned  before 
him  his  unfortunate  Grand-Vizier  Mustapha,  and,  with 
the  uncontrolled  caprice  of  an  Eastern  despot,  con- 
demned him  to  instant  impalement.  The  army  was 
drawn  out  to  witness  the  punishment  of  their  chief, 
who  could  not  execute  the  orders  of  his  master.  In 
vain  did  Mustapha  appeal,  by  his  youth  and  by  his 
nearness  of  blood,  to  the  mercy  of  the  Sultan.  He 
turned  a  deaf  ear  to  his  supplications.  Pacha  Peri, 
presuming  on  his  former  influence  with  the  Sultan  in 
his  boyhood,  also  ventured  to  entreat  his  compassion 
and  forbearance.  Solyman,  more  angry  that  any  one 
in  his  court  should  be  bold  enough  to  thwart  his  will, 
and  perhaps  jealous  of  the  interference  of  Peri,  ordered 
him  also  to  be  impaled*  with  his  friend.  The  other 

*  Impalement  was  formerly  a  common  Turkish  punishment.  The  victim 
was  fastened  to  a  stake,  which  was  run  through  his  body,  and  so  left  to  die  a 
horrible  lingering  death.  Lord  Byron  gives  this  fearful  description  of  it:  — 


118  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

pachas  present,  in  consternation  at  this  new  edict  of 
wrath,  devoutly  prostrated  themselves  at  the  feet  of 
their  master,  and  implored  him  to  forego  his  purpose. 
Solyrnan,  moved  by  their  entreaties,  recovered  himself 
from  his  passion,  and  granted  his  two  generals  their 
lives.  He  dismissed  both  from  their  commands,  com- 
pelled Mustapha  to  return  to  Constantinople,  and  nomi- 
nated the  Pacha  Achmet  to  be  in  his  stead  the  Com- 
inander-in-Chief. 

Pacha  Achmet,  induced  by  a  sense  of  professional 
honor,  and  fully  persuaded  that  he  ought,  according  to 
the  laws  of  engineering  tactics,  to  have  been  successful 
in  his  attempt  against  the  bastion  held  by  the  Knights 
of  Spain  and  Auvergne,  induced  the  Sultan  to  consent 
to  his  trying  one  more  assault  against  this  devoted  post. 
On  Sunday,  the  29th  of  September,  he  re-opened  a  gen- 
eral bombardment,  and  then  led  an  assault  on  the  seri- 
ously damaged  rampart  in  the  immediate  front  of  his 
own  quarters.  The  scenes  already  described  were 
again  renewed.  The  utmost  possible  resistance  was 

"To-morrow,  yea,  to-morrow's  evening  sun, 
"Will  sinking  see  impalement's  pangs  begun; 
And,  rising  with  the  wonted  blush  of  morn, 
Behold  how  well  or  ill  those  pangs  are  borne — 
Of  torments  this  the  longest  and  the  worst, 
Which  adds  all  other  agony  to  thirst, 
That  day  by  day  Death  still  forbears  to  slake, 
"While  famished  vultures  flit  around  the  stake." 

Corsair,  Canto  II.,  stanza  9. 


DEFEAT   AND   DEPARTURE.  119 

made.  The  Knights  and  the  bravest  Janizzaries  met 
in  deadly  conflict  on  the  breach.  The  same  mur- 
derous efforts  for  the  victory  were  on  both  sides 
persevered  in.  The  final  result  was  the  same.  The 
forces  of  Achrnet  failed  against  the  fiery  courage  of  the 
champions  of  Spain.  In  this  contest  the  brave  Mar- 
tenegro,  who  had  so  well  and  nobly  conducted  the  ope- 
ratkfii  of  the  siege,  was  wounded  in  his  eye  by  an 
arquebus  ball;  and  the  heroic  Lisle  Adam  added  for 
some  weeks  to  his  other  duties  the  superintendence  of 
the  artillery,  and  the  actual  direction  of  the  defence. 
He  domiciled  himself  in  this  Spanish  bastion,  as  the 
point  of  most  imminent  peril ;  and  at  one  time  acting  as 
a  soldier,  at  another  as  an  artillerist,  and  never  under 
any  circumstances  .omitting  the  onerous  duties  of  Com- 
mander-in-Chief.  he  was  first  and  foremost  in  every 
alarm,  attack,  and  post  of  danger. 

The  month  of  September,  which  had  witnessed  so 
many  attempts  to  take  the  fortress,  and  so  many  re- 
pulses from  its  walls,  had  now  drawn  to  a  close.  Both 
besiegers  and  besieged  were  equally  wearied  and  ex- 
hausted. The  general  assault  on  the  24th  of  Septem- 
ber, so  gallantly  made  and  so  successfully  resisted,  was 
the  real  turning-point  and  crisis  of  the  siege.  During 
the  months  of  October  and  November  inactivity  pre- 
vailed both  in  the  camp  and  in  the  city.  Achmet 
Pacha  adopted  a  new  course  of  tactics.  The  siege  was 


120  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

turned  into  a  blockade.  Mines  and  countermines,  sub- 
terranean galleries  discovered  and  mined  by  the  foe, 
were  the  only  actual  hostilities.  Sorties  from  within 
and  escalades  from  without  were  abandoned,  as  it  were 
by  a  tacit  understanding  and  consent.  The  Sultan,  in 
proof  of  his  determination  to  persevere  and  to  wait  the 
issues  of  the  blockade,  caused  a  wooden  house  to  be 
built  for  himself,  and  sought  to  protect  his  troops  from 
the  rains  that  fall  in  the  late  autumn  on  the  coast  of 
the  Mediterranean.  This  resolution  of  the  Sultan  was 
the  last  thing  that  Lisle  Adam  could  have  wished  or 
have  expected.  He  had  fully  hoped  that,  according  to 
his  custom,  Solyman  would  have  abandoned  the  expedi- 
tion and  re-embarked  his  troops  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
summer.  But  now  he  well  knew  that  there  was  only 
one  chance  left  him  of  success,  and  that  was  relief  from 
the  efforts  of  members  of  the  Order  dispersed  through- 
out the  countries  of  Christendom.  Nor  were  these 
hopes  entirely  unfounded. 

Though  neither  pope  nor  prince  were  found  through 
all  the  breadth  of  Europe  to  hold  out  a  helping  hand  to 
save  this  great  bulwark  of  the  Christian  faith,  yet  was 
the  Brotherhood  true  to  itself.  Three  different  con- 
voys of  vessels  were  dispatched  from  France,  Spain, 
and  England  with  forces  and  ammunition  for  the  gal- 
lant heroes  in  Rhodes,  but  not  one  succeeded  in  reach- 
ing the  port  of  their  destination.  The  French  ships 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPASTURE.  121 

were  scattered  by  a  tempest;  the  Spanish  were  cap- 
tured by  the  Turks,  after  a  stubborn  resistance,  off 
Rhodes ;  and  the  English  vessels,  under  the  command 
of  the  gallant  and  experienced  mariner  Sir  Thomas 
Newport,  were  shipwrecked  off  the  coast  of  Corsica ;  so 
Lisle  Adam,  in  addition  to  his  trials  in  the  endurance 
of  the  siege,  had  to  bear  the  burden  of  that  hope  de- 
fercct,  which  nraketh  even  the  heart  of  the  brave  man 
sick. 

In  the  meanwhile  Achmet  Pacha  gradually  tightened 
his  hold  upon  the  fortress.  He  had  advanced  his  mines 
aud  galleries  so  far  within  the  fortress  that  Lisle  Adam 
was  compelled  to  pull  down  houses  and  churches  that 
he  might  the  more  effectually  defeat  his  plans  and  frus- 
trate his  preparations.  The  engineering  operations  of 
the  two  armies  came  at  this  time  into  such  close  contact 
in  their  subterranean  arrangement,  that  often  they  were 
only  separated  by  a  thin  partition  of  earth-work.  The 
impatience  of  Solyman  could  not  stand  these  desultory 
proceedings  of  his  scientific  general ;  and  in  obedience 
to  the  imperial  command,  Achmet  once  more,  on  the 
last  day  of  November,  gave  orders  for  a  second  general 
assault.  After  a  cannonade  through  the  preceding  night 
from  all  his  batteries,  the  troops  at  daybreak  advanced 
to  the  attack.  It  was  unexpected  by  the  garrison ;  yet, 
at  the  sound  of  the  bells,  which  were  rung  to  announce 
the  approach  of  the  Turks,  Martenegro,  who  had  now 


122  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

partially  recovered  from  his  wound,  led  the  Knights  and 
their  men-at-arms  to  the  rescue,  and  with  the  assistance 
of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town,  animated  by  rage  or  des- 
pair, drove  back  their  assailants  on  every  side.  Their 
success  also  on  this  occasion  was  promoted  by  a  very 
heavy  rain,  which  fell  in  torrents,  and  rendered  useless 
for  a  time  the  Turkish  entrenchments. 

Pacha  Achmet,  in  spite  of  this  repulse,  fully  con- 
vinced that  the  battered  fortress,  however  brave  its  de- 
fenders might  be,  could  not  possibly  hold  out  much 
longer,  induced  the  Sultan  to  give  him  leave  to  propose 
terms  of  capitulation.  For  this  purpose  he  caused  a 
quantity  of  arrows  to  be  shot  into  the  town,  calling 
upon  the  townsmen  to  accept  the  terms  which  the  Sul- 
tan was  willing  to  offer.  Nor  were  these  missives 
without  effect.  The  inhabitants,  for  some  time  deeply 
sensitive  of  the  hardships  of  their  situation,  now  met 
together  to  request  the  Archbishop  of  Rhodes  and  the 
Greek  Patriarch  to  eu treat  Lisle  Adam  to  come  to 
terms  with  the  enemy.  In  the  meanwhile  the  Grand 
Master  instituted  a  strict  inquiry  into  the  true  condition 
of  the  fortress,  and  was  assured  on  authoritative  evi- 
dence that  its  walls,  ramparts,  and  bastions  were  totter- 
ing to  their  foundations,  and  that  his  stock  of  powder 
was  almost  exhausted.  Under  these  circumstances,  the 
decision  of  his  council  was,  that  the  time  had  come  in 
which  negotiations  for  peace  should  be  commenced. 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  123 

On  the  morning  of  Tuesday,  the  10th  of  December, 
the  Grand  Sultan  made  the  first  effort  towards  peace, 
by  unfurling  a  white  flag  on  his  entrenchments.  This 
was  answered  by  a  like  signal  from  the  ramparts.  Two 
Ottoman  officers  of  rank,  attended  by  their  suite,  ap- 
proached the  walls,  and  were  met  by  the  Prior  of  St. 
Giles  and  the  General  Martenegro,  the  Moltke  of  the 
sie£e,  as  representatives  of  Lisle  Adam.  A  letter  was 
presented  by  the  Ottoman  captains  from  their  lord. 
Within  a  few  hours,  after  due  deliberation,  an  answer 
was  returned  by  a  Knight,  Antony  Grolee,  and  by  a 
Judge  Perruchi,  both  of  whom  were  acquainted  with 
the  language  of  the  Ottoman  court.  While  these  ne- 
gotiations were  in  progress,  an  emeute  of  a  singular 
character  occured  in  the  town.  That  portion  of  the 
Rhodian  inhabitants  who  had  been  remarked  for  their 
prudent  care  of  their  persons  during  the  siege,  now 
gathered  with  clamorous  shouts  before  the  palace  of 
Lisle  Adam,  and  complained  of  being  handed  over  to  a 
foreign  yoke,  declaring  their  willingness  to  lose  their 
lives  in  war  rather  than  to  accept  the  proposed  capitu- 
lation. Lisle  Adam  expressed  his  personal  sympathy 
with  their  wishes,  asserted  that  their  sentiments  coin- 
cided entirely  with  his  own,  and  hinted  that  even  yet 
an  opportunity  might  be  afforded  them  of  proving 
against  the  battalions  of  the  enemy  their  new-fledged 
valor.  Nor  were  his  surmises  long  unfulfilled.  Soly- 


124  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

man,  with  .'ill  the  caprice  of  an  Eastern  despot,  because 
his  proposals  were  not  immediately  complied  with, 
broke  off  the  negotiation,  and  prepared  for  a  third 
general  immediate  assault.  Lisle  Adam  at  once  sum- 
moned to  his  help  his  late  war-disposed  petitioners,  and 
on  one  refusing  to  fight,  handed  him  over  to  the  pro- 
vost-marshal for  immediate  execution. 

This  final  general  assault,  made  on  Tuesday,  Decem- 
ber 17th,  like  all  the  preceding  ones,  was  succesfully 
resisted  and  repulsed.  The  Turks,  in  spite  of  the 
crumbling  walls  and  greatly  reduced  numbers,  were 
driven  from  the  walls  by  their  heroic  defenders.  On 
the  following  morning,  December  18th,  the  Grand  Mas- 
ter, in  compliance  with  an  earnest  address  from  the 
townsmen,  presented  by  the  Lathi  Archbishop  and  by 
the  Greek  Patriarch,  and  from  his  own  conviction  that 
further  resistance  would  only  result  in  a  needless  effu- 
sion of  human  blood  in  a  cause  which  was  beyond 
human  help,  sent  two  ambassadors  from  himself,  and 
two  representatives  of  the  inhabitants,  to  the  camp  of 
Solyman  to  announce  his  willingness  to  accept  terms  of 
surrender.  The  conditions  required  by  Lisle  Adam, 
and  granted  by  Solyman,  secured  to  the  inhabitants  of 
Rhodes  the  continued  free  exercise  of  their  religion,  the 
preservation  of  their  city,  churches,  and  houses,  from 
injury  or  pillage,  the  exemption  of  their  children  from 
Ottoman  military  service,  the  free  passage  of  the 


DEFEAT  AND  DEPARTURE.  125 

Knights  and  soldiers  from  the  fortress,  the  reservation 
of  their  fleet,  with  its  armaments  and  provisions,  the 
permission  to  take  with  them  their  property  and  as 
many  of  the  townsmen  as  should  wish  to  accompany 
them.  These  proposals  savored  so  little  of  the  '  woe  to 
the  conquered ! '  the  common  lot  of  the  defeated,  and 
were  so  different  from  the  usual  stern  alternatives  of 
th£  Koran  or  the  sword  enforced  by  the  Ottoman 
sultans  on  their  foes,  that  even  in  their  surrender  the 
Sea-Kings  secured  tokens  of  their  triumph.  At  all 
events  they  caused  the  Sultan,  for  the  sake  of  obtaining 
their  fortress,  to  forego  all  the  characteristics  of  his 
creed.  Conditions  of  peace  so  contrary  to  the  sacred 
traditions  of  his  house  and  empire  might  well  be  consid- 
ered as  terms  of  an  honorable  capitulation,  rather  than 
as  tokens  of  a  veritable  conquest. 

Such,  then,  was  the  termination  of  the  second  siege 
of  Rhodes.  It  forms  an  episode  in  human  history  for 
which  mankind  itself  is  the  better.  The  fact  that  a 
handful  of  European  warriors  could,  for  six  long 
months,  under  the  heat  of  a  semi-eastern  sun  and  the 
deluge  of  a  semi-tropical  autumnal  rain,  with  crumbling 
walls  and  breached  fortifications,  withstand  the  collected 
might  of  the  most  powerful  military  power  then  exist- 
ing in  the  earth,  must  influence  for  good  all  succeed- 
ing generations.  The  heart  of  the  youth  who  hears 
about  these  glorious  results,  which  could  only  have 


126  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

been  attained  by  a  supreme  sense  of  duty,  undeviating 
obedience  to  authority,  ardent  love  of  liberty,  and 
hatred  of  tyranny,  a  solemn  conviction  of  deep  respon- 
sibility, a  loving  devotion  to  the  teachings  of  the  Cross, 
will  beat  with  a  purer  glow,  as  he«resolves,  if  opportu- 
nity should  occur,  to  emulate  their  conduct,  and  to 
imitate  their  example.  The  silver  trumpet  which 
sounded  out  a  farewell  salutation  as  Lisle  Adam  and 
his  noble  companions  proceeded  for  the  last  time  from 
their  ramparts  to  their  fleet,  is  still  preserved  among 
the  treasured  relics  of  the  Order.*  With  the  last  tones 
of  its  clarion  notes  the  reputation,  riches,  and  glory  of 
Rhodes  sank  for  ever  in  a  dark  relapse  on  the  departure 
from  its  shores  of  the  "Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterra- 


*  This  silver  trumpet  is  preserved  (with  other  relics  of  the  Order)  under  a 
glass  case  in  the  armory  of  the  Palace  of  the  English  Governors  of  Malta. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

WANDERINGS. 

»*""" 

' '  So  sinks  the  day-star  in  the  ocean  bed, 
And  yet  anon  repairs  hia  drooping  head." 

MILTON,  Lycidas,  168. 

LISLE  ADAM,  for  the  sake  of  a  good  omen,  fixed  on 
January  1st,  A.  D.  1523,  as  the  day  of  his  final  em- 
barkation. That  New  Year's  day  saw  as  sad  and 
touching  a  sight  as  the  world  ever  witnessed.  Never 
did  a  more  mournful  or  more  varied  procession  pass 
out  of  the  gates  of  a  city.  In  it  were  to  be  seen 
men,  women,  and  children  of  every  age,  rank,  and 
condition :  the  tottering  grandsire,  the  babe  at  the 
breast,  the  stalwart  father  of  the  household,  surrounded 
by  his  wife  and  little  ones.  Here,  mingled  in  one 
continuous  throng,  were  soldiers  clad  in  their  panoply 
of  mail,  Asiatic  merchants  with  flowing  robes  and  costly 
turbans,  Greek  sailors  in  striped  shirts  and  gay-col- 
ored caps,  serge-dressed  monks,  cassocked  priests, 
white-coifed  nuns  from  Europe,  dark-colored  slaves 
with  long  unkempt  hair  and  ancles  bound  in  fetters. 
Here,  too,  was  many  a  litter  borne  on  men's  shoulders, 

127 


128  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

conveying  a  wounded  knight  or  soldier  to  the  berth 
prepared  for  him,  and  many  ,a  rude  wagon,  dragged  by 
mule  or  ox,  carrying  the  household  goods  of  the 
wealthier  citizens  to  the  ships,  while  the  hand-truck  or 
goat-carriage  helped  to  move  the  poor  man's  chattels. 
In  the  hinder  part  of  the  procession  a  train  of  priests, 
arrayed  in  their  rich  officiating  vestments,  bore  on  their 
shoulders,  in  gilded  reliquaries  uplifted  on  costly  biers, 
the  sacred  treasures  of  the  Church  of  St.  John,  among 
which  were  the  Image  of  the  Virgin  of  Philermos,*  and 
the  gift  of  the  Sultan  Bajazet,  the  right  hand  of  John 
Baptist.  As  the  day  began  to  wane,  Lisle  Adam,  at- 
tended by  the  small  company  of  Knights,  the  survivors 
of  the  late  stubborn  conflict,  and  followed  by  a  guard 
of  squires  and  men-at-arms  in  their  coat  armor,  and 

*  Sir  George  Bowyer,  in  the  Tablet  of  May  23d,  1868  (No.  1467),  and  Dr. 
Paolo  Pullicino,  Canon  of  the  Church  at  Malta,  in  a  little  book  published  hi 
the  year  1868,  have  given  a  minute  account  of  this  image.  It  was  made  of 
wood,  and  is  said  to  have  been  painted  by  St  Luke.  It  was  ornamented 
with  all  kinds  of  rich  jewels,  and  encased  in  a  most  costly  tabernacle.  It 
was  originally  brought  by  a  gentleman  from  Jerusalem  to  Ehodes,  in  which 
place  many  wonders  were  reported  of  it.  Many  of  these  are  related  by  Sir 
George  Bowyer  and  by  Canon  Pullicino.  They,  however,  omit  one  narra- 
tive gravely  recorded  in  the  Martyrologium  of  the  Order  of  St.  John,  con- 
tained in  the  Public  Registry  of  Malta,  viz.,  "that  on  one  occasion,  on  the 
approach  of  the  image,  evil  spirits,  in  the  shape  of  frogs,  leapt  out  from  the 
stomach  of  a  sick  woman  who  had  not  tasted  of  any  other  food  for  twelve 
months."  Although  this  is  omitted  by  the  two  learned  historians  of  the 
Madonna  of  Philermos,  yet  it  is  a  fair  specimen  of  the  wonders  attributed 
to  this  image  in  their  respective  narratives. 


WANDERINGS.  129 

equipped  with  sword,  or  pike,  or  battle-axe,  left  his 
palace,  entered  for  the  last  time  the  Cathedral  of  St. 
John  to  invoke  a  blessing  on  his  voyage,  and  thence, 
amidst  the  tolling  of  all  the  bells  of  the  city,  and  the 
flourish  of  many  trumpets,  marched  through  the  Strada 
dei  Citvalieri,  lined  on  both  sides  with  the  mansions  of 
the  k;ingues,  under  the  picturesque  arch  of  the  Cos- 
quino  gate,  along  the  great  mole  leading  to  the  tower 
of  St.  Nicholas,  and  there  entered  his  state  barge,  and 
was  rowed  to  the  carrack  or  great  galley  in  waiting  for 
him.  In  that  last  hour  of  departure,  in  the  breaking-up 
of  families,  in  the  separation  of  friends,  in  the  dividing 
forever  those  who  had  been  hitherto  associated  in  the 
strongest  ties  of  blood,  country,  and  religion,  there  were 

"  Hurryings  to  and  fro, 
And  gathering  tears,  and  tokens  of  distress, 
And  sad  and  sudden  partings,  such  as  press 
The  life  from  out  young  hearts,  and  choking  sighs."  * 

Every  heart  was  weighed  down  with  sad  recollections 
of  the  past,  and  with  gloomiest  anticipations  for  the 
future.  Behind  them  was  the  fortressed  city,  with  its 
pleasant  environs  of  olive-groves,  orchards,  gardens,  and 
perpetual  streams,  which  they  had  loved  so  well  and 
suffered  so  much  to  save.  Before  them  were  the  perils 
of  the  sea,  the  search  for  a  distant  and  as  yet  unknown 
resting-place,  the  uncertainty  of  ever  finding  a  haven  of 

*  Byron's  Childe  Harold. 

9 


130  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 


r,  or  a  voice  of  welcome.  No  sooner  was  the 
Grand  Master  on  board  than  the  signal  was  given  for 
leaving  the  harbor,  and  he  put  to  sea,  accompanied  by 
fifty  vessels  of  various  kinds,  carracks,  galleys,  galiots, 
brigantines,  and  feluccas.  Never,  in  all  the  chequered 
circumstances  of  his  eventful  life,  had  Lisle  Adam 
greater  need  of  high  resolve  and  firm  faith  than  at  this 
moment.  He  had  now,  if  it  were  possible,  a  mightier 
task  to  achieve  than  the  repulse  of  the  Ottoman  army. 
To  his  care  and  counsels  was  committed  at  this  moment 
the  preservation  of  that  wonderful  Brotherhood  which, 
deriving  strength  from  all  Christian  countries,  and  yet 
owing  allegiance  to  none,  had  been  for  centuries,  under 
a  superintending  Providence,  the 

"Bulwark  of  the  Christian  creed, 
Fair  Europe's  shield  in  hour  of  need." 

While  the  sovereigns  of  Christendom,  forgetful  of 
their  higher  duties,  were  at  this  period  quarreling 
among  themselves  on  puny  and  petty  questions  of 
dynastic  ambition,  the  Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean 
were,  in  their  expulsion  from  their  island  home  at 
Rhodes,  mindful  of  the  sacred  obligations  imposed  on 
them  by  their  original  institution.  Lisle  Adam,  in  all 
his  plans  and  projects,  was  ever  deeply  impressed  with  a 
sense  of  the  responsibilities  imposed  upon  him  as  the 
foremost  of  Christian  Knights.  The  record  of  his  noble 
conduct  and  patriotic  exertions  may  be  an  Iliad  of 


WANDERINGS.  131 

woes,  but  his  efforts,  after  a  lengthened  course  of  trial 
and  disaster,  were  crowned  with  an  eventual  success. 

The  fleet  that  now  carried  within  its  wooden  cham- 
bers this  precious  freight  of  the  heroes  of  our  story  was 
in  a  very  crank  and  unseaworthy  condition.  It  had 
been  necessarily  prepared  in  haste,  and  was  ill-found 
anjt-badly  provisioned.  It  wanted,  too,  its  proper  com- 
plement of  rowers,  as  the  Sultan  had  either  released 
or  taken  to  his  own  use  the  slaves  from  all  garts  of  his 
dominions  who  had  been  in  the  service  of  the  Order 
for  this  work.  The  vessels  were  for  the  most  part 
overcrowded  with  passengers  and  overladen  with  the 
goods  and  chattels  carried  off  from  the  town  and 
fortress.  Lisle  Adam  decided  on  bending  his  course,  in 
the  first  distance,  to  Crete,  an  island  about  200  miles 
distant,  under  the  government  of  the  republic  of 
Venice.  Before  he  could  reach  the  port  a  violent 
slorm  arose,  and  caused  much  damage  to  his  ships. 
Many  vessels  were  dismasted,  others  were  wrecked  and 
all  hands  .lost,  and  the  remainder  reached  Crete  only  by 
making  a  sacrifice  of  the  bales  and  goods  with  which 
they  were  overfreighted. 

The  Venetian  Governor  of  Crete,  Paul  Justinien, 
acted  like  a  brave  and  compassionate  man.  He  not 
only  complied  with  the  request  of  Lisle  Adam  to 
land  and  refit,  but  exerted  himself  to  supply  the  wants 
and  to  alleviate  the  sufferings  of  the  unhappy  refugees, 


132  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

and,  with  a  chivalrous  courtesy  worthy  of  his  high  posi- 
tion, received  the  Grand  Master  on  his  landing  with  all 
the  accustomed  salutes  and  honors.  Lisle  Adam  re- 
mained in  this  friendly  asylum  for  three  months.  His 
first  care  was  to  superintend  the  disembarkation  of 
his  much-tried  and  afflicted  followers:  and  what  a 
weight  of  human  woe  was  then  revealed  !  There  were 
not  only  the  wounded  Knights  and  soldiers  to  de- 
mand the  tender  ministrations  of  his  services,  but  the 
greater  part  of  his  people  were  in  a  most  miserable 
plight;  the  large  majority  being  ill  from  scarcity  of 
food  and  badness  of  provisions,  while  some,  through  the 
loss  of  their  goods  in  the  storm,  were  half  naked, 
and  without  even  a  change  of  linen.  Lisle  Adam 
devoted  himself  to  the  relief  of  their  wants,  and,  as- 
sisted by  the  charity  and  good-will  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Crete,  provided  to  the  utmost  for  their  comfort  and 
accommodation.  During  his  sojourn  in  Crete  he  was 
joined  by  an  additional  number  of  his  friends.  Among 
these  were  the  members  of  the  Fraternity  in  com- 
mand of  Lango,  Syma,  and  the  other  petty  dependen- 
cies of  Rhodes,  to  whom  he  had  sent  orders  to  abandon 
their  posts,  and  the  Archbishop  of  Rhodes,  Leonard 
Balestino,  dismissed  by  the  Sultan  from  his  high 
office  in  the  island. 

In    the   month   of  April,  after   the   vernal   equinox 
was  past,  Lisle   Adam   resumed   his   wanderings,  and 


WANDERINGS.  133 

named  Messina,  in  Sicily,  as  the  next  place  of  ren- 
dezvous. With  a  noble  disinterestedness,  and  with  a 
characteristic  disregard  of  his  own  personal  comfort,  he 
sent  his  sick  and  wounded  in  his  own  carrack,  under 
the  care  and  pilotage  of  an  English  Knight-commander, 
Sir  Thomas  Weston;  while  he  emharked  in  one  of 
the  small  galleys  which,  being  unfitted  for  the  bolder 
passage  across  the  sea,  was  compelled  to  proceed 
from  harbor  to  harbor  along  the  coast.  On  his  arrival 
at  Messina,  .at  the  beginning  of  May,  two  pleasant  inci- 
dents occurred  to  mitigate  his  anxiety.  In  the  first 
place,  he  found  a  letter  awaiting  him  from  Pope  Adrian 
VI.,  inviting  him  to  his  court,  and  offering  the  city 
of  Viterbo,  a  few  miles  from  Rome,  as  a  temporary 
home  for  himself  and  'followers.  The  Pope  still  more 
encouraged  him  by  expressing  a  hope  that  arrangements 
might  be  made  by  which  another  independent  seat  and 
sovereignty  might  be  found  for  his  noble  Brotherhood, 
so  that  they  might  be  enabled  to  resume  their  ancient 
vocation,  in  fronting  the  Moslem,  and  in  vindicating  the 
honors  of  the  Christian  faith  and  flag  in  a  manner 
worthy  of  the  former  fame  of  the  Sea-Kings  of  the 
Mediterranean.  In  the  next  place,  the  reception  ac- 
corded him  by  the  numerous  Knights  assembled  at 
Messina  was  peculiarly  gratifying.  They  received  him 
on  his  arrival  with  the  most  loyal  and  affectionate  devo- 
tion. As  he  disembarked  from  his-  shattered  vessel, 


134  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

they  met  him  bareheaded,  and  preceded  him,  two  and 
two,  in  solemn  procession  through  the  streets,  amidst 
the  acclamations  of  the  people,  to  the  palace  allotted  to 
his  use,  where  they  renewed,  in  his  presence,  within  the 
council-chamber,  their  vows  and  protestations  of  obedi- 
ence, and  proved  that,  though  they  had  lost  for  a  time 
their  home,  yet  they  had  no  intention  of  abandoning 
the  duties  of  Brotherhood,  or  of  withholding  from  their 
chief  in  this  hour  of  humiliation  their  former  tokens  of 
homage,  allegiance,  and  fidelity. 

The  sufferings  of  Lisle  Adam,  however,  were  not  yet 
at  an  end.  Weakened  by  severe  privations,  hard  fare, 
and  unavoidable  overcrowding,  his  people  were  fit  sub- 
jects for  disease.  Shortly  after  his  disembarkation  at 
Messina,  a  fatal  pestilence  broke  out  and  claimed  a 
holocaust  of  victims.  Lisle  Adam  at  once  determined 
to  depart,  and  conveyed  his  fleet,  crews,  and  people  to 
the  beautiful  bay  of  Baise,  in  which  he  obtained  leave 
to  land,  and  was  soon  relieved  from  anxiety  by  the 
rapid  recovery  of  his  numerous  invalids.  Within  a  few 
days  he  resumed  his  voyage,  and  reached  Civita 
Vecchia,  the  nearest  port  alike  to  Viterbo  and  to  Rome, 
in  safety. 

Here  he  made  arrangements  for  a  temporary  sojourn 
of  his  followers,  until  he  could  learn  from  Pope 
Adrian's  own  lips  his  ultimate  pleasure  and  will  con- 
cerning them.  The  tidings  of  his  arrival  were  soon 


WANDERINGS.  135 

conveyed  to  the  supreme  Pontiff,  when  an  early  day 
was  named  for  his  admission  to  an  audience.  A  most 
splendid  reception  was  accorded  him.  His  great- 
nephew,  Anne  de  Montmorency,  a  marshal  of  France, 
met  him  with  a  superb  cortege  at  some  distance  from 
the  city.  When  he  approached  the  walls  of  Rome,  the 
Master  of  the  Ceremonies  to  the  Papal  Court,  with  the 
Swiss  Guard  and  some  cavalry  soldiers,  attended  him  ; 
and,  just  within  the  gates,  the  gilded  and  red  coaches 
of  the  Cardinals  and  of  the  Due  de  Sesse,  the  ambassa- 
dor of  Charles  V.,  joined  the  procession,  and  accompan- 
ied him  to  the  Vatican.  The  whole  city  was  en  fete. 
As  he  passed  over  the  bridge  across  the  Tiber,  at  the 
foot  of  the  Castle  St.  Angelo,  a  salute  of  artillery 
was  fired.  On  his  entrance  to  the  hall  of  audience, 
Adrian  VI.,  although  very  ill,  advanced  some  steps 
to  meet  him,  and  when  he  would  have  stooped  to 
kiss  his  foot,  raised  him  up,  and  embraced  him  tenderly. 
He  then  made  him  sit  in  the  very  centre  of  the  Cardi- 
nals, and  after  assuring  him  that  he  would  do  all  he 
could  for  a  fraternity  so  useful  and  dear  to  Christen- 
dom, called  him  "The  Hero  of  Rhodes,  and  the  De- 
fender of  the  Faith." 

Pope  Adrian  VI.  died  within  a  few  days  of  this 
interview,  on  Monday,  September  14th,  1523.  His  suc- 
cessor, Clement  VII.,  as  soon  as  the  ceremonies  of  his 
election  and  enthronement  were  over,  sent  for  Lisle 


136  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

Adam,  and  assured  him  of  the  continuance  of  the  favors 
shown  to  him  by  his  predecessor.  His  interviews  with 
the  new  Pope,  however,  were  no  longer  merely  compli- 
mentary, but  were  devoted  to  a  solution  of  the  difficul- 
ties of  his  position,  as  seeking  a  permanent  home  within 
the  compass  of  the  Mediterranean,  for  resuscitation  of 
the  Institution  over  which  he  ruled.  Clement  VII.,  at 
the  suggestion  of  Andre  Vendrimiano,  Archbishop  of 
Corfu,  proposed  the  choice  of  three  islands,  Cerigo, 
Elba,  or  Malta.  To  the  first  Lisle  Adam  objected, 
as,  Cerigo  being  under  the  government  of  Venice,  its 
cession  might  expose  that  republic  to  the  enmity  and 
resentment  of  Solyman ;  the  second  he  declined,  be- 
cause Elba  was  part  of  the  kingdom  of  Spain,  and 
the  possession  of  that  island  might  render  the  Brother- 
hood too  subservient  to  the  influence  of  one  single  Euro- 
pean sovereign,  and  so  endanger  their  accustomed 
neutrality  and  independence ;  the  third  offer,  more 
specially  recommended  by  the  Pope,  was  accepted  and 
approved  by  the  Grand  Master,  on  the  condition  that 
the  Emperor  Charles  V.,  the  Suzerain  of  Malta,  would 
include  in  his  grant  a  surrender  of  the  full  and  ex- 
clusive sovereignty  of  the  island.  Lisle  Adam,  with 
Clement's  approval,  sent  eight  commissioners  to  inspect 
and  to  make  a  report  upon  Malta,  and  an  embassy 
of  three  Knights,  including  the  Prior  of  St.  Giles, 
Martenegro,  and  Bosie,  three  of  the  heroes  of  the  late 


WANDERINGS.  137 

siege,  to  arrange  with  the  Emperor  Charles  V.  the 
terms  for  the  transfer  of  the  island.  In  the  meanwhile 
the  Grand  Master  and  his  train  of  followers  located 
themselves  at  Viterbo,  a  city  in  the  Papal  States,  there 
to  await  the  issues  of  these  different  negotiations. 

The  wheels  of  diplomacy  moved  but  slowly ;  and 
after  a  twelvemonth  of  waiting,  Lisle  Adam,  wearied 
with  th"e  delays  and  difficulties  in  his  path,  determined 
to  seek,  in  a  personal  interview  with  the  Etnporer, 
the  final  settlement  of  the  pending  arrangements.  A 
complimentary  request,  made  to  him  at  this  time  by  the 
Regent  of  France,  the  mother  of  Francis  I.,  confirmed 
him  in  this  resolution.  The  beautiful  Duchess  D'Alen- 
con,  sister  of  Francis,  resolved  to  go  to  Madrid,  to 
appeal  in  her  own  person  to  the  magnanimity  of 
Charles  V.  to  release  her  gallant  but  unfortunate 
brother,  then  a  prisoner  of  war  in  his  capital ;  and  Lisle 
Adam  was  entreated  to  come  to  Marseilles  with  his 
carrack  and  galleys,  and  to  convoy  this  spirited  lady 
in  her  loving  and  romantic  errand.  His  chivalry  was 
not  appealed  to  in  vain.  The  royal  wish  conveyed  to 
him  corresponded  with  his  previously-formed  intention. 
He  set  sail  from  Civita  Vecchia,  and  reached  Marseilles 
in  the  middle  of  June,  A.  D.  1525;*  and,  having  re- 

*  The  battle  of  Pavia  was  fought  on  Saturday,  February  2oth,  1525. 
Francis  I.,  at  its  close,  is  said  to  have  made  the  memorable  but  melancholy 
declaration,  "I  have  lost  all  but  honor  I " 


138  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

ceived  the  fair  Duchess,  accompanied  by  a  splendid 
suite,  on  board  his  flag-ship,  piloted  her  in  safety  to 
Spain. 

We  are  now  to  see  the  present  hero  of  our  story  in 
a  new  character,  worthy  of  his  high  position  as  a  Sea- 
King  of  the  Mediterranean.  He  was  no  longer  the 
brave  defender  of  a  fortress,  or  the  gallant  chief  of  a 
military  Order,  but  appeared  as  the  companion  of 
kings,  the  Nestor  of  politics,  the  arbiter  in  a  degree 
of  the  destinies  of  Europe.  Charles  V.  received  him 
•with  particular  distinction,  and  paid  him  those  honors 
with  which  a  brave  man  delights  to  show  his  regard  for 
the  brave.  He  lodged  him  in  his  own  palace,  admitted 
him  to  his  council,  and  made  him  sit  on  the  same  dias  as 
himself; 

"  Courted  and  caressed, 
High  plac'd  in  hall,  a  welcome  guest"  * 

He  conferred  on  him  a  still  greater  mark  of  his  es- 
teem, and  employed  his  mediation  for  the  peaceful  set- 
tlement of  the  complications  of  Europe.  With  all  his 
respect  and  gratitude  to  his  imperial  host,  Lisle  Adam 
did  not  forget  that  he  was  a  Knight  of  France,  and 
that,  as  such,  his  allegiance  was  due  to  his  own  sov- 
ereign lord,  even  though  a  captive.  He  obtained  leave, 
therefore,  to  pay  his  devoirs  to  Francis  I.,  and  so  far  in- 
gratiated himself  in  his  favor,  that  he  consulted  him  on 

*  Soott'fl  Minstrel. 


WANDERINGS.  139 

his  affairs,  and  placed  himself  in  his  haud.  Lisle  Adam, 
thus  trusted  by  both  monarchs,  was  enabled  to  bring 
them  to  a  reconciliation.  Within  a  few  weeks  of  his 
coming  to  Madrid,  Francis  I.  obtained  his  deliverance, 
and  a  restoration  to  his  kingdom.  An  interesting  an- 
ecdote illustrates  the  intimacy  of  the  intercourse  with 
which  the  two  sovereigns  honored  Lisle  Adam.  As 
Francis  I.  and  Charles  V.  were  walking  in  the  gardens 
of  the  palace  they  came  to  a  gate,  at  the  entrance  to 
which  each  refused  to  advance,  and  courteously  sought 
to  give  precedence  to  the  other.  The  Emperor  turned 
suddenly,  and  bade  Lisle  Adam  settle  the  dispute.  "  I 
would  to  God,"  said  the  veteran  chief,  "  that  your 
Majesties  might  never  differ  on  a  more  important  mat- 
ter ;  but,  Sire,"  addressing  his  own  sovereign,  "  I  think 
the  very  first  prince  in  Christendom  may  be  allowed,  in 
his  own  palace,  to  pay  any  honor  he  pleases  to  the 
greatest  king  in  Europe."  This  reply,  so  courtier-like 
and  appropriate,  contented  both  sovereigns,  and  put 
them  in  good  humor  with  themselves,  and  with  each 
other.*  Lisle  Adam,  on  his  departure  from  Madrid, 
might  have  entered  at  once  on  the  possession  of  Malta, 
but  he  did  not  think  that  the  time  had  yet  arrived  for 

*  There  is  a  somewhat  similar  story  told  of  a  later  French  king  and  an 
English  ambassador.  The  Earl  of  Stair  waited  for  Louis  XIV.  to  enter  first 
into  liis  carriage.  The  king  bade  the  earl  to  enter  himself  first,  who  instant- 
ly obeyed;  whereon  the  king  declared  that  he  was  the  best  bred  man  in  Eu- 
rope. 


140  KNIGHTS   AND   SEA-KINGS. 

so  open  and  decided  a  renunciation  of  his  former  home. 
He  yet  entertained  secret  hopes  of  being  restored  to 
Rhodes,  either  by  the  treacherous  betrayal  of  the  is- 
land' to  his  troops,  or  by  the  union  of  the  sovereigns  of 
Europe  in  one  coraman  Christian  league  for  the  forcible 
expulsion  of  its  Moslem  conquerors.  Buoyed  up  with 
these  hopes  he  determined  to"  visit  Francis  I.,  now  re- 
stored to  his  throne,  and  also  to  wait  in  person  on 
Henry  VIII.,  that  he  might  invoke  his  sympathy  and 
co-operation,  and  protest  against  the  spoliation  of  his 
Fraternity,  which  seemed  at  this  time  to  be  contem- 
plated in  England.  For  these  purposes  he  again  sailed 
to  Marseilles,  and  thence,  after  paying  his  homage  to 
Francis  at  Paris,  reached  London  in  February,  A.  D. 
1527.  The  Grand  Master,  during  his  sojourn  in  Eng- 
land, took  up  his  abode  at  the  Grand  Priory  of  his 
Order,  St.  John's,  Clerkenwell. 

A  few  days  after  his  arrival  he  proceeded  to  pay  his 
visit  of  ceremony  to  Henry  VIII.,  then  resident  in  his 
palace  at  Westminster.  Seldom  had  a  more  splendid 
cavalcade  passed  through  the  streets  of  London.  Many 
great  lords  connected  with  the  Court,  with  their  foot- 
"men,  yeomen  of  the  guard,  beefeaters,  and  halberdiers, 
were  sent  by  the  King  to  do  honor  to  his  illustrious 
visitor.  Then  came  a  long  array  of  Knights,  who  at- 
tended, as  in  duty  bound,  on  their  heroic  chief  on  this 
memorable  occasion.  The  Grand  Prior  of  England,  Sir 


WANDERINGS.  141 

William  Western,  the  Prior  of  Clerkenwell,  several 
grand  crosses  and  commanders,  mounted  on  horseback 
and  habited  in  the  robes  of  the  Order,  waited  on  by  a 
long  train  of  esquires  and  men-at-arms,  and  accompanied 
by  trumpeters,  who  occasionally  sounded  forth  a  salute, 
preceded  the  Grand  Master.  Last  of  all  rode  Lisle 
Adarn^himself,  with  his  gray  hairs,  noble  mien,  and 

P 

martial  bearing,  the  observed  of  all  observers.  Never 
did  citizen  raise  his  cap,  nor  his  nosier  apprentice  lift 
his  voice,  in  welcome  of  a  worthier  visitor  to  Old  Eng- 
land. Henry  VIII. —  and  no  monarch  in  Europe  could 
be  more  courtly  and  gracious  than  he,  when  it  pleased 
him  —  received  his  guest  with  every  consideration  of 
respect.  His  nature  was  chivalrous  enough  to  appre- 
ciate noble  heroism,  and  to  admire  deeds  of  valor;  and 
he  now  congratulated  his  guest  on  his  conduct,  declar- 
ing that  he  was  more  to  be  envied  for  his  defence  of 
Rhodes  than  for  the  conquest  of  a  province.  Henry 
VIII.  admitted  him  to  many  subsequent  interviews, 
encouraged  his  designs  by  a  large  supply  of  cannon  and 
ammunition,  and  presented  him,  on  the  eve  of  his  de- 
parture, with  a  mazar  bowl,  enriched  with  gold  and 
precious  stones,  as  a  final  proof  of  his  esteem. 

Shortly  after  his  safe  return  to  Viterbo,  Lisle  Adam 
experienced  a  severe  disappointment  of  his  fondly- 
cherished  hopes.  Instead  of  the  cessation  of  personal 
ambition  and  the  withdrawal  of  dynastic  differences  be- 


142          .  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KINGS. 

tween  the  powers  of  Europe,  he  had  the  mortification 
of  hearing  of  a  renewal  of  war  between  the  Emperor 
Charles  V.  and  the  Pope  Clement  VII.,  which  led  to 
the  cruel  devastation  of  Rome  by  the  Imperial  general, 
the  Grand  Constable  Bourbon.  This  melancholy  and 
unexpected  event  at  last  brought  conviction  to  the 
mind  of  the  Grand  Master  that  if  he  was  in  his  lifetime 
to  see  his  beloved  Fraternity  replaced  in  a  new  home, 
where  they  might  again  exercise  a  sovereign  indepen- 
dent authority  and  devote  themselves  in  renewed 
strength  and  ardor  to  their  former  onerous  and  honora- 
ble duties  as  the  foremost  soldiers  of  Christendom,  then 
the  occupation  of  Malta  was  the  only  course  left  open 
for  his  adoption  and  acceptance. 

Once  satisfied  of  the  wisdom  and  necessity  of  this 
policy,  Lisle  Adam  set  himself  seriously  to  the  task 
of  bringing  the  long-standing  negotiations  to  a  success- 
ful termination.  He  summoned  a  Grand  Council  of  the 
Order  to  meet  in  Viterbo  in  the  spring  of  A.  D.  1529. 
The  unanimous  voice  of  the  Council  approved  the 
island  of  Malta  as  the  future  home  of  the  Hospitallers, 
if  it  could  be  obtained  with  the  full  acknowledgment  of 
their  sovereign  and  exclusive  possession.  Charles  V. 
acquiesced  in  these  conditions,  and  conferred,  by  a 
grant  signed  March  24,  1530,  the  sovereignty  of  the 
island  of  Malta  on  Lisle  Adam  and  his  successors,  on 
the  single  condition  of  presenting  to  the  Imperial 


WANDEBINGS.  148 

Viceroy  in  Sicily  a  falcon  on  every  return  of  All  Souls' 
Day,  November  2nd. 

Thus  Lisle  Adam,  after  many  perils  successfully  es- 
caped, many  exertions  courageously  carried  out,  many 
rewards  and  honors  righteously  won,  found  at  last  a 
safe  and  permanent  home,  to  which  he  removed  his 
band  of  faithful  Knights,  and  the  remnant  of  his 
Rhodfan  followers  who  yet  survived  the  dangers  of 
their  melancholy  exodus  and  the  strange  vicissitudes  of 
their  wanderings.  His  closing  years,  neither  robed  in 
sadness  nor  clouded  with  obscurity,  were  graced  with 
the  brighter  glory  of  the  declining  sun.  With  the 
chief  wish  of  his  heart  gratified:  with  the  inward 
conviction  that  his  new  island  home  was  admirably 
fitted,  by  its  creeks,  bays  and  harbors,  for  the  resumption 
by  his  Fraternity  of  their  high  vocation  as  opponents  of 
the  Crescent :  with  a  life  prolonged  .to  see  the  well-laid 
foundations  of  the  prosperity  of  his  people,  Lisle  Adam 
may  have  departed  in  peace,  in  a  sure  anticipation  of 
the  future  triumphs  of  the  Order  he  loved  so  much  and 
ruled  so  well.  The  wisdom  of  his  choice  in  the  se- 
lection of  his  final  asylum  has  been  amply  vindicated. 
Succeeding  generations  have  witnessed,  in  the  gallant 
exploits,  noble  achievements,  and  glorious  victories  of 
his  descendants,  the  best  credentials  of  their  rightful 
claim  to  the  inheritance  of  his  fame,  and  to  the  main- 
tenance of  his  sceptre,  as  one  of  the  greatest  of  the 
"Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean." 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

FAME  AND  HEKOISM. 

"  There  is  something  of  pride  in  the  perilous  hour, 
Whate'er  be  the  shape  in  which  Death  may  lower; 
For  Fame  is  there  to  say  who  bleeds, 
And  Honor's  eye  on  daring  deeds." 

BYRON,  Siege  of  Corinth. 

LlSLE  ADAM  and  his  successors,  mindful  of  their 
duties  as  the  franc-tireurs  of  the  ocean,  devoted  them- 
selves with  the  utmost  assiduity  in  their  new  home 
to  the  resuscitation  and  improvement  of  their  navy. 
Animated  by  a  remembrance  of  their  wrongs,  by  an  in- 
tense hatred  of  the  Crescent,  and,  it  must  in  candor- 
bo  added,  by  an  insatiable  thirst  for.  booty,  the  Hos- 
pitallers of  St.  John  so  multiplied  their  vessels  during 
the  first  forty  years  of  their  occupation  of  Malta,  that 
they  had  again  become  a  source  of  annoyance  and 
terror  to  the  Turkish  fleets.  Never  had  they  possessed 
a  more  undoubted  maritime  supremacy  in  the  palmiest 
days  of  their  glory  at  Rhodes,  and  never  had  they  num- 
bered at  any  previous  time  among  the  members  of  their 
Order  so  many  zealous,  able,  and  experienced  sea- 
144 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  145 

captains.  One  of  the  most  famous  of  these  was  the 
Commander  De  Romegas.  A  sailor  from  his  youth,  he 
knew  every  bay,  creek,  current,  and  wind  of  the 
great  ocean  which  encircled  his  Sea-King  home,  and 
was  as  bold  in  daring  as  he  was  rich  in  experience. 
Romegas,  while  coasting  in  his  galley  along  the  shore 
of  Sicily,  in  the  spring,  1563,  fell  in  with  an  enormous 
ship-of-war,  commanded  by  Ysyf  Cominey,  a  famous 
Ottoman  admiral,  notorious  for  his  cruelties  to  his 
Christian  prisoners.  His  vessel  carried  200  sailors  and 
250  fighting  men.  Although  Romegas  was  inferior 
alike  in  the  size  of  his  ship  and  in  the  number  of  his 
crew,  he  determined  to  try  and  capture  his  opponent. 
The  two  vessels  fired  at  each  other  with  their  cannon 
for  some  time,  when  a  few  men  were  killed  and 
wounded,  and  damage  was  done  to  spars  and  rigging. 
Romegas  after  a  while  boldly  rowed  against  his  ad- 
versary, and  having  dashed  against  her  side  with  a 
crash,  seized  hold  with  a  tight  embrace  of  his  grappling- 
irons.  The  combat  now  raged  with  the  intensest  fury. 
The  crews  pushed,  and  smote,  and  assaulted  each  other 
with  pike,  spontoon,  sword,  and  halberd.  The  victory 
was  long  in  doubt,  when  Romegas,  supported  by  his 
officers,  made  a  desperate  leap  on  board  his  antago- 
nist, and,  sword  in  hand,  established  his  hold  on  the 
forecastle  of  the  ship.  Cominey  flew  to  the  post  of 
danger,  and  being  wounded  in  a  personal  encounter 
10 


146  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

by  Romegas,  fell  down  into  the  hold  of  the  rowers. 
These  slaves,  in  bitter  retaliation  for  the  cruelties  in- 
flicted on  them,  seized  and  passed  him  on  with  vio- 
lent blows  from  one  bench  to  another  till  he  fell 
down  dead.  The  conqueror  released  eighty  Christian 
slaves  found  among  the  rowing-crew,  supplied  their 
places  with  as  many  Turkish  sailors,  and  conveyed 
his  prize  across  the  Malta  channel,  to  the  harbor  of 
Valetta. 

Withinxa  few  weeks  De  Romegas  was  again  at  sea, 
and  achieved  a  more  notable  victory.  Accompanied  by 
a  second  galley,  under  the  command  of  his  lieutenant, 
Chevalier  de  la  Motte,  he  met  off  Scarpenta,  an  island 
between  Crete  and  Rhodes,  with  another  huge  Turkish 
vessel,  a  veritable  floating  castle  compared  with  his 
own  little  galleys.  Incensed  by  the  presence  of  his  foe- 
men,  and  ignorant  alike  of  prudence  or  of  fear,  he 
resolved  to  attack.  On  a  near  examination  of  his 
antagonist,  he  found  the  ship  to  be  so  large,  and  so  well 
provided  with  artillery  and  musketeers,  that  his  only 
chance  was  the  superiority  of  his  guns,  and  the  greater 
speed  of  his  ships.  He  sent  a  boat  to  order  his  lieuten- 
ant, La  Motte,  to  conform  to  his  tactics,  and  to  advance 
on  one  side,  fire,  and  then  retreat  to  a  safe  distance 
to  reload,  while  he  did  the  same  on  the  other  side. 
A  profound  calm  favored  these  manoeuvres.  The  two 
galleys  drew  near,  discharged  their  cannon,  and  then, 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  147 

by    their  superior  swiftness,  moved  out  of  reach  and 
range  of  the  enemy. 

This  artillery  combat  lasted  some  hours,  when  at 
last,  without  any  attempt  at  boarding  or  close  com 
bat,  the  huge  ship  struck  its  colors  to  the  two  little  gal- 
leys. Romegas  and  La  Motte  quickly  manned  theii 
boats^and  mounted  her  deck  and  received  the  swords* 
of  ner  admiral  and  officers.  They  were  no  less  as 
tonished  than  delighted  with  their  victory.  The  prize 
was  rich  beyond  their  expectations.  It  was  laden  with 
much  costly  merchandise  and  with  nearly  600  slaves 
from  Egypt  and  Mauritania,  destined  for  the  market  at 
Constantinople.  It  (had  also  on  board  an  illustrious 
ruler,  a  Sangiac  by  rank,  on  his  route  from  Cairo  to  pay 
his  allegiance  to  the  Sultan  Solyman.  The  triumph 
of  ^omegas  was  the  greater,  as  this  ship  was  com- 
manded by  Rais  Ygli,  a  gallant  captain  of  the  Imperial 
Ottoman  navy,  who  had  never  yet  known  a  defeat 
at  sea,  and  who  had  with  him  a  veteran  crew  of  sailors 
and  soldiers  accustomed  to  naval  conflict.  Scarcely, 
however,  had  the  Christian  commanders  realized  the 
certainty  of  their  success,  before  the  conquered  floating 
castle  began  to  founder  from  the  great  injuries  inflicted 
on  her  by  the  cannonade,  and  thus  an  unexpected  testi- 
mony was  afforded  to  the  valor  of  its  defenders  in  hold- 
ing out  to  the  last  extremity.  The  victors  were  able 
with  difficulty  to  save  the  lives  of  Ygli  and  his 


148  KNIGHTS   AND   SEA-KINGS. 

people,  and,  with  their. two  vessels  dangerously  over- 
crowded, hastened  homewards.  They  thus  lost  their 
reward,  except  the  ransom  to  be  obtained  for  the  re- 
lease of  the  captive  ruler  of  Cairo,  and  of  Rais  Ygli. 

One  other  naval  fight  and  victory  of  Romegas 
eclipsed  all  his  former  exploits.  In  the  next  summer, 
A.  D,  1564,  he  was  ordered  to  join,  with  his  two  galleys, 
the  five  other  vessels  of  the  Order  sailing  under  the  flag 
of  the  Admiral  of  the  fleet,  Chevalier  Guion.  The 
united  squadron,  while  sailing  quietly  along  between 
Zante  and  Cephalonia,  fell  in  with  the  largest  vessel  in 
the  Turkish  navy.  This  great  caracca  was  the  prop- 
erty of  Kuster  Aga,  the  chief  Chamberlain  of  Solyman. 
Many  ladies  of  the  seraglio,  and  persons  of  influence  at 
the  Ottoman  court,  had  a  share  in  its  venture.  It  was 
commanded  by  the  Rais  Bairam-Ogli,  and  armed  with 
twenty  large  cannon,  with  several  others  of  smaller 
calibre.  It  was  manned  by  a  picked  crew,  and  pro- 
tected, in  addition  to  its  artillerists,  by  two  hundred 
chosen  Janizzaries.  Admiral  Guion,  on  his  part,,  being 
in  command  of  so  numerous  a  fleet,  imagined  in  the 
first  instance  that  the  vessel,  large  as  it  was,  would 
.  offer  no  resistance,  and  fired  an  unshotted  cannon 
across  its  bows  as  a  summons  to  surrender. 

"A  flash  is  seen;  the  ball  beyond  their  bow 
Booms  harmless,  hissing  to  the  deep  below."  • 

*  Corsair. 


FAME  AND  HEEOISM.  149 

Bairam-Ogli,  in  answer  to  this  salute,  proudly  flew 
all  his  colors,  and  replied  with  a  broadside,  aimed  at  the 
Admiral's  ship,  as  a  proof  of  his  courage  and  determina- 
tion. Guion  and  Romegas,  convinced  that  they  must 
either  fight  or  allow  the  enemy  to  escape,  arranged  a 
precise  order  of  battle.  They  agreed  that  the  two  ves- 
sels bearing  their  own  flags  should  first  advance  on 
either  side,  and  approach  as  near  as  they  could  with 
-safety,  and  fire  their  cannon;  and  then,  while  they  re- 
tired to  reload,  the  two  next  vessels  under  their  respec- 
tive flags  should  in  like  manner  advance,  fire  their 
broadsides,  and  retire ;  and  their  places  should  be  sup.- 
plied  after  a  similar  manner  by  the  three  remaining 
ships.  Thus  the  seven  vessels  were  to  take  part  in  the 
fight,  and  to  fire  by  relays  in  as  rapid  a  succession  as 
they  could.  This  well-designed  plan  was  at  first  frus- 
trated by  the  jealous  rivaly  of  the  two  Admirals.  Each, 
alike  impetuous  in  courage,  and  impressed  with  a  con- 
tempt of  the  enemy,  only  thought  of  obtaining  single- 
handed  the  exclusive  glory  of  the  victory.  Guion, 
instead  of  acting  on  the  plan  agreed  upon,  came  at  once 
to  close  quarters,  and  placed  his  galley  under  the  poop 
of  his  opponents.  By  this  bold  but  imprudent  manoeu- 
vre his  vessel  waa  placed  at  the  greatest  disadvantage. 
The  Turkish  Janizzaries,  from  the  superior  height  of 
their  ship,  were  enabled  to  use  their  firearms  with  the 
utmost  effect,  and  enveloped  the  flag-ship  in  a  sheet  of 


150  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

flame,  crushing  the  crew  with  masses  of  stone,  and 
killing  them  with  their  musketry.  The  cannon,  too, 
discharged  point-blank,*  did  great  damage,  so  that  the 
Admiral-in-Chief  was  quickly  compelled  to  retire  from 
the  unequal  contest.  Romegas,  on  the  other  side,  came 
also  after  the  example  of  his  chief  at  once  to  close  quar- 
ters, and  attempted  to  board,  with  his  usual  intrepidity ; 
but  a  large  gun,  fired  point-blank,  broke  the  stays  of 
his  vessel,  and  at  one  stroke  killed  or  disabled  twenty- 
two  of  his  crew ;  others,  to  avoid  the  shot,  leapt  into 
the  water,  and  caused  him  to  retire  most  reluctantly  to 
a  safe  distance.  The  two  next  galleys  in  the  line,  wit- 
nessing the  disasters  of  their  consorts,  took  up  their 
positions  as  originally  appointed,  on  either  side  of  their 
huge  opponent:  and,  discharging  their  cannon  at  a  dis- 
tance, at  the  same  moment,  poured  so  effective  a  fire 
that  they  killed  or  wounded  many  of  the  Janizzaries. 
The  three  remaining  gallejs  in  their  turn  advanced  and 
delivered  their  broadsides,  and  though  they  inflicted 
loss  on  their  enemies,  yet  they  also  received  injuries  .at 
their  hands. 

As  these  three  last  galleys  retired,  Guion  and  Rome- 
gas  were  again  ready  for  the  attack:  Taught  by  the 
experience  of  their  former  failure,  and  compelled  to 
respect  the  bravery  of  their  foe,  they  put  aside  all  per- 

*  Point-blank,  directly,  as  an  arrow  is  shot  to  the  point-blank,  or  white 
mark 


FAME   AND   HEROISM.  151 

sonal  feeling,  and  resorted  to  their  original  tactics.  For 
five  long  hours  did  the  seven  galleys,  in  their  successive 
turns,  advance  and  retreat  after  firing  on  their  antago- 
nist. During  that  period  the  combat  was  persevered  in 
with  uncertain  results.  The  resolute  Turkish  soldiers 
knew  the  value  of  their  cargo,  and  the  power  of  its 
courtly  owners  to  repay  with  rich  rewards  their  obsti- 
nat»"resistance ;  and,  conscious  that  the  galleys  of  the 
Sea-Kings,  in  spite  of  their  continuance  of  the  contest, 
had  been  severely  wounded,  refused  to  yield.  At  last 
a  perceptible  slackening  was  manifested  in  the  fire  of 
the  Turks,  and  the  seven  galleys  of  the  united  squad- 
ron, boldly  placing  themselves  in  close  quarters  on  both 
the  sides,  poop,  and  forecastle  of  their  giant  antagonist, 
effected  a  boarding  in  several  places.  Bairara-Ogli, 
finding  that  a  resistance  any  further  prolonged  would 
be  useless,  hauled  down  his  colors  in  token  of  surren- 
der. So  fierce  and  determined  had  been  the  contest  of 
the  Turks,  that  the  conquerors  paid  dearly  for  their 
success  in  the  deaths  of  120  of  their  companions, 
among  whom  were  some  of  the  noblest  names  and  of 
the  best  blood  in  their  Order.  The  loss  of  the  con- 
quered only  amounted  to  eighty  slain. 

This  important  capture  of  so  rich  and  well-pro- 
tected" a  prize  created  no  small  stir  at  Constantinople. 
The  same  imperious  ruler,  Solyman  the  Magnificent, 
whom  we  have  seen  in  his  youth  as  the  conqueror  of 


152  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

Rhodes,  still  sat  on  the  Ottoman  throne.  The  interval 
of  forty  years  had  neither  chilled  his  blood,  moderated 
his  ambition,  nor  mollified  his  hatred  of  his  former  tradi- 
tionary foes.  He  had  heard,  with  the  utmost  anger,  of 
the  revival  of  the  power  of  the  Sea-Kings  of  the  Medi- 
terranean, and  of  their  continued  depredations  on  his 
ships  and  subjects ;  and  now,  stirred  up  by  the  exasper- 
ation and  remonstrances  of  his  habitual  attendants,  he 
was  led  to  regard  this  last  bold  enterprise  of  the 
capture  of  Bairam-Ogli  as  a  personal  insult  to  himself 
and  to  his  court.  The  cup  of  his  indignation  was  full, 
and  he  swore  a  right  royal  oath,  by  his  own  head, 
that  he  would  destroy  and  exterminate  the  whole  de- 
tested Brotherhood. 

Nor  was  he  long  in  deciding  upon  his  schemes. 
Supported  by  the  unanimous  voice  of  his  Divan ;  im- 
pelled to  his  design  by  the  expostulations  of  his  Mufti, 
who  urged  him  as  a  good  Mussulman,  by  his  veneration 
for  the  Prophet,  to  secure  for  his  subjects  a  safe  access  * 
to  the  sacred  shrines  at  Mecca  and  Medina,  the  tomb 
and  birthplace  of  Mahomet;  encouraged  by  the  zeal 
and  willingness  of  his  generals  to  undertake  the  war ; 
and  more  especially  persuaded  by  the  glowing  prospects 

*  The  Mufti,  in  his  speech  in  the  Divan  preparatory  to  the  war,  stated 
that  during  the  five  years  preceding  the  great  capture  of  Bairam-Ogli' s  car- 
rack,  the  loss  of  the  Turks  had  amounted  to  fifty  vessels  of  war,  besides 
smaller  merchant  vessels  innumerable.  Vertot,  Book  XII.,  voL  iii,  p.  425. 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  153 

of  success,  and  the  splendid  promises  of  help,  both  by 
troops  and  ships,  made  him  by  Dragut,  a  famous 
chieftain  of  Tripoli,  in  Africa,  renowned  at  once  for  his 
naval  exploits  and  for  his  numerous  engagements  with 
the  navies  of  Malta,  Solyman  determined  that  the  ensu- 
ing spring  should  see  the  destruction  of  his  ancient  foes, 
and  the  total  expulsion  of  the  Christian  Sea-Kings  from 
the  4ibme  of  their  adoption.  The  Sultan,  probably 
through  increasing  age  and  infirmities,  and  by  reason  of 
the  greater  length  of  the  voyage,  did  not  undertake,  as 
in  his  last  conflict  with  the  Hospitallers,  the  personal 
command  of  the  expedition;  but  entrusted  its  superin- 
tendence and  direction  to  his  two  Pachas,  Piali  and 
Mustapha.  The  first  had  the  charge  of  the  fleet,  and 
the  second  of  the  army.  Pacha  Piali's  history  affords 
an  example  of  Eastern  romance.  Solyman,  on  his 
retreat  from  Hungary,  found  him  as  an  infant  bound  up 
in  swaddling  clothes,  and  left  by  his  frightened  parents 
on  the  sock  of  a  ploughshare.  Pleased  with  his 
smiling  upon  him,  he  ordered  the  babe  to  be  taken  and 
cared  for,  and  educated  in  his  seraglio.  Piali  repaid 
his  kindness  by  becoming  one  of  the  most  famous  Otto- 
man admirals.  Some  five  years  previously,  in  A.  D. 
1500,  he  obtained  a  great  naval  victory  over  a  Christian 
fleet,  under  the  command  of  the  Venetian  Admiral 
Doria,  and  was  rewarded  with  the  hand  of  a  daughter 
of  the  Sultan ;  and  now,  in  the  full  energy  of  his  man* 


154  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

hood,  and  in  the  blossom  of  his  success,  he  was  ap- 
pointed .chief  in  supreme  command  of  the  Ottoman  fleet 
designed  for  the  conquest  of  Malta.  Pacha  Mustapha, 
on  the  other  hand,  was  a  contemporary  in  years  of 
his  imperial  master,  and  was  passing,  like  him  into 
the  sere  and  yellow  autumn  of  life.  He  was  the 
general  of  whom  we  have  already  read  as  the  unsuc- 
cessful invader  of  Rhodes.  He  had,  since  that  event, 
learned  experience  in  many  a  tented  field,  and  still  at 
the  age  of  sixty-five  years,  retained  the  favor  and  confi- 
dence of  the  Sultan,  who  made  him  the  Commander-in- 
Chief  of  his  army.  These  two  able  viziers  carried  out, 
with  the  utmost  alacrity  and  hearty  will,  the  intentions 
of  their  sovereign.  They  collected  ships  or  soldiers 
from  Alexandria,' Rhodes,  the  coasts  of  Asia  Minor,  the 
various  seaports  of  Africa,  Greece,  and  the  Black  Sea, 
and  from  all  quarters  of  the  huge  Turkish  Empire,  so 
that  by  the  spring  of  A.  D.  1565,  30,000  chosen  troops, 
and  150  vessels,  with  a  large  fleet  of  transports,  were 
prepared  to  accomplish  the  will  of  the  Sultan. 

These  important  preparations  were  neither  unknown 
to,  nor  unmarked  by,  those  against  whom  they  were 
prepared.  It  has  frequently  been  observed  that  Divine 
Providence  raises  up  great  men  fitted  for  great  occa- 
sions. No  one  could  be  better  adapted  to  meet  the 
exigencies  of  the  present  crisis  than  the  heroic  man  who 
at  this  time  presided  over  the  destinies  of  the  Knights 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  155 

of  Malta.  John  de  Valette",  equal  to  his  famous  prede- 
cessor, D'Aubusson,  in  his  lofty  courage,  and  to  Lisle 
Adam  in  his  spirit  of  devotion,  surpassed  them  both 
in  the  fervor  of  his  enthusiasm,  and  in  his  undeviat- 
ing  trust  in  a  Divine  protection.  As  a  personal  witness 
of  all  the  circumstances  of  the  final  siege  of  Rhodes,  he 
was  fully  conscious  of  the  magnitude  of  the  peril, 
and  ol:  the  puissance  and  perseverance  of  his  foe ;  yet  he 
never  gave  place  for  a  moment  to  idle  fears,  nor  to  a 
doubt  of  his  power  to  make  an  effectual  resistance. 
He  succeeded  in  hiring,  chiefly  by  the  means  of  Count 
Toledo,  the  Viceroy  of  Charles  V.  in  Sicily,  2,000  mer- 
cenaries, and  sent  trusty  messengers  to  all  the  Houses 
of  his  Fraternity  in  the  different  countries  of  Europe  to 
excite  the  sympathy  and  to  demand  the  presence  and 
assistance  of  his  knightly  companions.  By  vast  exer- 
tions he  collected,  by  the  spring  of  A.  D.  1565,  an  army 
of  700  knights,  and  8,000  men-at-arms.  To  these  he 
allotted  the  different  posts  of  his  fortress  according 
to  their  nationalities.  The  Spanish  Chevalier  Garzer- 
anvos,  with  fifty  knights  and  500  soldiers,  was  en- 
trusted with  the  custody  of  St.  Angelo.  The  Borgo 
itself,  containing  the  palace  of  the  Grand  Master, 
and  the  residences  of  the  "  Langues,"  was  defended  by 
the  chivalry  of  France,  Provence,  and  Auvergne.  The 
space  of  rampart  from  the  Borgo  to  St.  Michael's 
was  answered  for  by  the  chevaliers  of  Germany,  Portu- 


156  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

gal,  and  Arragon.  Monte  and  his  Italians  were  respon- 
sible for  the  castle  on  Point  Sanglea.  The  experienced 
and  resolute  De  Romegas  was  charged  with  the  defence 
of  the  entrance  to  the  Great  Harbor  ;  while  the  defence 
of  the  Port  of  the  Galleys  was  committed  to  a  Castilian 
engineer,  Gurial,  who  erected  a  battery  of  nine  guns  to 
defend  the  chain  thrown  across  the  entrance  from  San- 
glea to  St.  Angelo.  The  important  star-shaped  fort  sit- 
uated at  St.  Elmo,  the  furthermost  extremity  of  Mount 
Sceberras,  was  committed  to  the  charge  of  two  valiant 
veteran  officers,  D'Eguerras,  Bailiff  of  Negropont,  and 
Broglio,  a  Knight  of  Piedmont.  Chevalier  Copier,  of 
the  "  nation  "  Auvergne,  with  200  cavalry  and  600 
Turkopoliers,  were  appointed  to  watch  the  landing  of 
the  enemy,  and  to  act  as  skirmishers,  or  as  a  corps 
of  observation.* 

On  the  morning  of  Friday,  May  18th,  a   gun   fired 

*  An  inspection  of  the  diagram  prefixed  to  the  next  chapter  will  best  ex- 
plain these  positions.  The  chief  feature  of  the  scene  of  the  contest  to  be 
recorded  in  this  chapter  was  the  bold  promontory  of  Mount  Scebarras,  A 
long  tongue  of  land  dividing  the  two  harbors  called  the  Great  and  Quaran- 
tine Harbors,  from  Marsa  Muscetto  Harbor.  This  promontory  is  now  the 
site  of  the  city  of  Valetta,  but  was  at  this  time  a  bare  rock,  with  the  star- 
fort  of  St.  Elmo  at  its  extremity.  The  Great  Harbor  is  on  the  east  side, 
parcelled  out  into  separate  bays  or  creeks  by  two  other  rocky  peninsulas, 
which  were  the  scenes  of  the  contest  recorded  in  the  succeeding  chapter. 
They  are  now  occupied  by  the  large  towns  of  Vittoriosa,  Sanglea,  Cospicua, 
and  Burmola.  Notabile,  since  called  Citta  Vecchia,  is  in  the  center  of  the 
island,  about  six  miles  from  Valetta. 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  157 

from  St.  Elmo  announced  the  appearance  of  the  great 
Ottoman  armament.  A  strong  gregale*-  wind  was 
blowing,  and  the  sea  was  exceedingly  rough.  The 
Knights  then  witnessed  a  sight  which,  under  other 
circumstances,  would  have  excited  all  their  sympathy 
and  admiration,  as  sailors  and  Sea-Kings:  the  whole 
magnificent  fleet  of  the  Turks,  after  passing  St.  Elmo, 
tacked,  and  sailed  before  the  breeze  along  the  coast 
to  the  small  island  of  Filfola,f  on  the  southeast  side, 
where  they  obtained  shelter  in  the  Bay  of  Magiarra. 
An  incident  occurred  during  its  brief  stay  here  which 
illustrates  the  heroism  of  the  Hospitallers.  A  party  of 
Janizzaries  having  landed  during  the  night,  concealed 
themselves  in  the  hollows  of  the  rocks,  and  at  dawn 
fell  suddenly  upon  a  knight  named  Riviera,  who  was  on 
the  watch  with  a  small  escort.  The  brave  hero  was 
conveyed  as  a  prisoner  to  Piali's  ship,  and  was  put 
to  the  torture  to  elicit  from  him  information  about 
the  fortress,  but  all  that  he  could  be  made  to  say 
amidst  his  agony  was  this,  "  If  they  wanted  to  attack 


»  Eight  winds  are  recognized  at  Malta,  and  are  opposed  to  each  other  in 
these  four  separate  pairs: — Notina,  S.,  and  Tramontana,  N.;  Lebeche,  S. 
W.,  and  Gregale,  N.  E. ;  Levant,  E.,  and  Ponente,  W. ;  Syrocco,  S.  E.,  and 
Mistrale,  N.  W. 

t  Filfola.  From  an  Arabic  word,  felfel,  a  pepper-seed ;  meaning  that  tha 
island  is  as  small  as  a  pepper-corn.  It  is  only  a  habitation  for  birds. 


158  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

the  weakest  part    they  must  begin  with  the   bastion 
of  Arragon." 

"  Still  in  his  stern  and  self -conceited  mien, 
A  conqueror's  more  than  captive's  air  is  seen."  * 

On  the  same  evening  the  wind  changed,  and  the 
whole  fleet,  lighted  by  lanterns  at  their  mast-heads,  re- 
traced their  course,  and  entered  the  Marsa  Sirocco  Har- 
bor. The  disembarkation  commenced  at  dawn.  In  the 
later  part  of  the  day  Pachas  Mustapha  and  Piali,  ac- 
companied by  their  suites  and  escorts,  rode  as  far  as 
the  Mount  Corrodino,  a  hill  about  a  mile  and  a-half 
from  Valetta,  from  which  they  could  see  the  Borgo, 
fortress,  and  harbors  stretched  before  them  as  a  map. 
They  brought  with  them  Riviera  heavily  ironed,  and 
required  him  to  name  the  various  posts  and  fortifica- 
tions. On  his  pointing  to  the  bastion  of  Arragon, 
which  he  had  described  as  the  weakest  part,  Pacha 
Mustapha,  observing  its  deep  ditches,  lofty  walls,  and 
strong  casemates,  struck  Riviera  with  a  cane,  and  or- 
dered him,  in  his  rage,  to  be  hewed  in  pieces  by  his 
soldiers.  This  self-sacrifice  of  Riviera  is  to  this  day 
commemorated  by  his  figure  being  painted  among  the 
most  worthy  heroes  of  the  Order  in  the  clerestory  of 
St.  John's  Cathedral  at  Valetta. 

"  Vulgar  minds 

Refuse  or  crouch  beneath  their  load ;  the  brave 
Bear  theirs  without  repining."  * 
•Thomson. 


FAME  AND  HEEOISM.  159 

On  the  next  day,  Saturday,  May  21st,  a  grand  coun- 
cil of  war  was  held,  at  which  it  was  resolved  that 
the  first  step  should  be  the  capture  of  St.  Elmo.  The 
Turks,  by  the  help  of  oxen  taken  from  the  villagers, 
dragged  their  cannon  to  the  promontory  of  Sceberras, 
commenced  their  lines,  and  set  up  an  immense  frame- 
work which  they  had  brought  from  Constantinople,  in 
huge*  separate  pieces  of  timber,  for  the  more  speedy 
preparation  of  the  batteries.  The  Turkish  engineers  at 
first  contented  themselves  with  weakening,  with  their 
heavy  basilisks  and  field-pieces,  the  external  defences 
of  the  fort,  or  with  repulsing  the  frequent  sorties  and 
attacks  of  the  besieged.  The  arrival  of  Dragut,  with 
his  auxiliary  army,  about  the  first  week  in  June,  im- 
parted new  life  and  vigor  to  the  operations.  Pacha 
Piali  was  laid  on  one  side,  and  confined  to  his  ship,  by 
a  severe  wound  received  in  a  skirmish,  and  Mustapha, 
according  to  the  orders  received  from  the  Sultan,  en- 
trusted to  his  experienced  and  energetic  ally  the 
chief  direction  of  the  siege.  Dragut  was  worthy  of  this 
confidence.  The  sou  of  an  Algerine  chieftain,  who  for 
his  own  safety  acknowledged  the  suzerainty  of  and  paid 
tribute  to  the  Sultan,  and  was  yet  supreme  in  his 
own  dominions,  he  had  been  from  his  youth  a  rover 
on  the  seas.  He  had  seen,  too,  many  vicissitudes  of 
fortune,  having  been  often  a  victor  in  the  fight,  and  yet 
doomed  to  know  the  worst  bondage  of  the  rowing- 


160  ,  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

bench.  On  one  occasion  the  Admiral  of  the  Venetian 
fleet,  Doria,  took  him  prisoner,  and  chained  him  among 
the  rowers  of  his  galley,  where  he  toiled  amongst  the 
slaves  for  many  a  weary  month,  until  he  was  released 
in  consequence  of  an  attack  threatened  by  the  Ottoman 
Admiral,  Barbarossa,  if  his  release  had  not  been  con- 
ceded. These  changes  of  fortune,  and  his  heroic  en- 
durance of  them,  had  wonderfully  increased  his  power 
over  his  troops.  Like  the  Corsair  described  by  Lord 
Byron,  Canto  VIII,— 

"His  name  appals  the  fiercest  of  his  crew, 
And  tints  each  swarthy  cheek  with  sallower  hue; 
Still  sways  their  souls  with  that  commauding  art 
That  dazzles,  leads,  yet  chills  the  vulgar  heart." 

Dragut  condemned  the  proposal  to  attack  St.  Elmo, 
but,  as  that  step  had  been  decided  on,  stirred  up  Mus- 
tapha  to  a  greater  animation  in  the  conduct  of  the 
siege.  He  advanced  the  batteries  nearer  to  the  fort, 
erected  a  new  entrenchment,  supplied  with  four  guns, 
on  the  further  side  of  the  Marsa  Muscetto  Harbor, 
on  the  point  still  known  by  his  name,  and  made  other 
arrangements  to  increase  the  efficiency  of  the  attack. 
While  these  operations  were  in  progress,  the  fort  had 
nearly  been  taken  by  a  coup  de  main.  Some  Turkish 
artillerymen,  surprised  at  daybreak  one  morning  to  find 
that  their  approach  to  one  of  the  outer  works  was 
not  met  by  the  usual  show  of  resistance,  crept  cautious- 


FAME  AND  HEEOISM.  161 

ly  forward,  and,  mounting  on  each  others'  shoulders 
as  a  ladder,  looked  into  the  interior,  and  saw  all  the 
sentinels  lying  down  fast  asleep.  They  returned  quiet- 
ly to  their  trenches,  and  reported  to  their  commander, 
who  immediately  despatched  troops  with  scaling-lad- 
ders. The  Turks  obtained  possession  of  the  outpost 
without  being  discovered,  killed  some  of  the  soldiers, 
and  fiut  the  rest  into  such  a  panic  that  many  threw 
themselves  off  the  walls  into  the  deep  trenches  and 
were  killed  by  the  fall.  The  Turks  rushed  across  a 
narrow  bridge  leading  from  the  outpost  to  the  fort,  but 
the  alarm  had  been  given,  and  their  course  was  success- 
fully opposed  by  the  Knights. 

The  combat  became  general.  The  Turks,  reinforced 
by  fresh  troops,  made  good  their  occupation  of  the  out- 
post, and  so  crowded  upon  and  drove  back  the  garri- 
son, that  they  reached  the  very  entrance  of  the  fort 
itself.  Here,  however,  they  became  so  exposed  to  the 
fire  of  the  musketeers,  the  point-blank  range  of  the 
cannon,  and  to  the  massive  stones  hurled  from  the 
walls,  that  they  were  compelled  to  return,  foiled,  baf- 
fled, and  disappointed  of  their  hope.  The  combat  thus 
commenced  by  an  accident  at  sunrise,  became  in  its 
Drogress  so  important  and  hotly  contested,  that  it  cost 
the  Turks  the  lives  of  a  thousand  men,  while  the 
Knights  lost  twenty  of  their  Brethren  and  a  hundred 
soldiers.  A  touching  anecdote,  illustrating  the  chival- 
11 


162  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

rous  temper  of  our  heroes,  is  connected  with  this  epi- 
sode in  the  siege.  A  Frenchman,  the  Chevalier  de 
Bridievs,  having  been  wounded  by  a  musket  ball,  when 
one  of  his  companions  came  to  remove  him  from  the 
spot  where  he  had  fallen,  entreated  that  he  would 
not  for  his  sake  relinquish  his  post  of  duty.  "  Consider 
me,"  said  he,  "as  one  already  dead.  My  wound  is 
mortal.  Go  and  help  your  Brethren  in  their  need." 
De  Bridiers  had  just  strength  enough  to  drag  himself 
to  the  chapel,  and  was  found  lying  dead  before  the 
altar. 

The  additionl  means  of  attack  inaugurated  by  Dragut 
were  hastened  to  their  completion  under  his  own  daily 
energetic  and  personal  inspection.  On  Wednesday,  the 
18th  of  June,  the  new  entrenchment  on  Point  Dragut, 
the  huge  basilisks  on  Mount  Sceberras,  and  the  guns 
placed  in  position  on  the  ravelin  or  outpost  gained  in 
their  coup  de  main  by  the  Turks,  opened  on  the  de- 
voted Fort  of  St.  Elmo.  Their  united  fire  caused  such 
a  destruction  of  the  external  defences,  and  such 
breaches  in  the  walls,  that  Mustapha  and  Dragut  deter- 
mined on  an  immediate  general  assault.  Tidings  to 
this  effect  were  proclaimed  throughout  the  camp,  and 
Saturday,  the  16th  of  June,  was  named  as  the  day 
of  the  attack.  The  gallant  defenders  of  St.  Elmo 
had  kept  up  their  communication  with  Valetta  and 
their  brethren  in  the  Borgo  and  St.  Angelo.  They  had 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  163 

thus  been  enabled  during  the  night  to  remove  their  sick 
and  wounded,  and  to  receive  fresh  relays  of  command- 
ers and  soldiers,  with  supplies  of  ammunition  and  pro- 
visions. So  unselfish  was  their  conduct,  and  so  lively 
the  sense  of  obligation  to  their  vows  prevalent  among 
the  members  of  the  Order,  that  although  they  knew 
that  certain  death  was  the  penalty  of  joining  the  forlorn 
hope*in  St.  Elmo,  yet  so  many  volunteered  for  the  haz- 
ardous though  honorable  service,  that  Valette's  chief 
difficulty  was  to  decide  whom  he  could  make  choice  of. 
Where  every  one  thus  deemed  the  post  of  danger  to  be 
the  post  of  honor,  a  universal  determination  prevailed 
that  every  man  would  do  his  duty  even  to  the  sacrifice 
of  his  life. 

The  dawn  of  June  16th  was  ushered  in  by  the  boom- 
ing of  a  single  gun.  It  was  the  signal  for  a  general 
assault.  Scarcely  had  its  echoes  ceased  before  the 
Turkish  host  moved  forward  to  the  exhilarating  sounds 
of  cymbals  and  other  instruments  of  military  music. 

"  War  music,  bursting  out  from  time  to  time, 
With  gong  and  tymbalon's  tremendous  chime."  * 

Four  thousand  arquebusiers  were  told  off,  in  the  first 
place,  to  shoot  at  any  soldier  who  might  show  himself 
on  the  walls.  The  bold  advance  of  the  troops  ap- 
pointed for  the  assault,  and  their  rapid  ascent  of  the 
breach  to  come  to  close  encounter  with  their  foes,  soon 

*  Lalla  Rookh,  Canto  II.,  sub  fine. 


164  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KING3. 

superseded  this  office  of  the  sharpshooters.  They 
ceased  their  fire,  lest  friend  and  foe  should  be  involved 
in  one  indistinguishable  slaughter.  Then  commenced  a 
very  agony  of  contention.  Christian  and  Turk,  having 
exchanged  shots  with  each  other,  and  having  shattered' 
their  swords  and  broken  their  pikes  in  the  fury  of 
the  melee,  seized  each  other  by  the  body  and  tried,  at 
the  point  of  the  poignard,  which  had  the  claim  to  be 
the  stronger.  The  Knights,  too,  had  prepared  in  ex- 
pectation of  this  assault  a  special  weapon  of  offence. 
They  cast  down  upon  their  assailants  large  iron  circular 
hollow  hoops  filled  with  liquid  fire,  which  being  of  a 
considerable  diameter," enclosed  three  or  four  soldiers  at 
a  time  in  their  fiery  embrace,  burning  their  limbs,  and 
setting  on  fire  their  long  flowing  cotton  robes  and  silken 
turbans.  They  threw  also  small  earthenware  globes 
filled  with  fire,  which  had  a  train  attached  to  them, 
something  after  the  manner  of  a  modern  fusee,  and 
which  exploded  with  a  terrible  effect  in  the  thick  of  the 
troops,  and  caused  much  detriment  to  the  besiegers. 
Hour  after  hour  rolled  by,  and  the  conflict  was  con- 
tinued without  the  Turks  gaining  or  the  Christians 
losing  an  inch  of  ground. 

While  this  main  attack  was  thus  obstinately  con- 
tested at  the  extremity  of  Mount  Sceberras,  a  minor  as- 
sault was  made  on  another  and  different  part  of  the  for- 
tification. This  fort  was  on  one  side  washed  by  the  sea. 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  165 

"  Its  varying  circle  did  combine 
Bulwark  and  bartizan  and  line, 
And  bastion,  tower,  and  vantage  coign- 
Above  the  booming  ocean  leant 
The  far  projecting  battlement."  • 

Thirty  Turkish  sailors,  seeing  from  their  galleys  a 
rampart  on  the  sea-face  which  they  imagined  to  be 
feebly  defended  through  its  guards  being  summoned  to 
take  part  in  resistance  to  the  general  assault,  bound 
themselves  by  an  oath  to  get  possession  of  it.  They 
lauded  from  a  large  boat,  and  with  the  aid  of  their  lad- 
ders climbed  up  the  face  of  the  rock.  This  rock,  how- 
ever, was  within  reach  of  the  cannon  of  St.  Angelo,  and 
Valette  forthwith  fired  a  well-directed  shot  which 
killed  several  of  the  sailors,  and  caused  the  remainder 
to  desist  from  their  undertaking.  The  Grand  Master 
and  his  companions  occupied  a  most  unenviable  and 
tantalizing  position  during  this  conflict  of  their  brethren 
and  friends.  They  were  near  enough  to  hear  the  very 
shouts  of  the  combatants,  the  thunder  of  the  cannon, 
the  volleys  of  the  musketry,  and  all  the  confused  and 
multiplied  noises  of  the  battle.  They  could  tell  by  the 
sounds  the  various  alternations  of  the  fight,  and  to 
which  side  befel  the  temporary  success  or  temporary 
disaster ;  but  they  were  impotent  to  help,  and  except 
on  this  one  solitary  occasion,  were  unable  to  lend  any 
decisive  aid  or  co-operation.  At  the  expiration  of  six 
*  Marmion,  Canto  VL 


166  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KTSGS. 

hours,  the  Knights,  though  they  were  most  of  them 
wounded,  burnt  by  the  heat  of  the  noonday  sun,  and 
worn  out  by  fatigue,  had  the  happiness  of  hearing 
the  trumpet  sounding  a  retreat,  and  of  seeing  their 
enemies  abandon  their  attack.  The  might  of  the  Mos- 
lem recoiled  in  wonder  and  perplexity  from  that  rock- 
hewn,  sea-washed  fortress,  defeated  and  driven  back  by 
the  stern  prowess  and  unflinching  courage  of  the  Sea- 
Kings  of  the  Mediterranean.  The  termination  of  the 
combat  was  announced  to  their  companions  in  the  Bor- 
go  by  the  shouts  of  the  victors,  and  the  air  brought 
back  to  them  the  echoes  of  their  sympathetic  accla- 
mations and  rejoicings.  Three  thousand  Turks  fell 
in  this  great  struggle,  while  three  hundred  men-at-arms 
and  seventeen  Knights  was  the  price  of  victory  to 
the  conquerors. 

On  the  following  day,  June  17th,  a  council  of  war 
was  held  by  Mustapha  and  Dragut.  The  Algerine  Ad- 
miral insisted  that  no  surrender  of  Fort  St.  Elmo  can 
be  looked  for  so  long  as  fresh  troops  could  be  sent 
by  Valette  for  the  reinforcement  of  its  garrison.  For 
the  future  prevention  of  any  such  communication,  he 
summoned  his  fleet  of  galleys  to  set  a  close  watch  upon 
the  short  space  of  coast  between  St.  Elmo  and  the 
Great  Harbor,  lined  the  cliff  with  marksmen,  under 
strict  orders  to  keep  an  unerring  watch,  and  erected 
a  new  battery  close  to  the  margin  of  the  sea  and  able  to 


FAME   AND   HEROISM.  167 

rake  with  its  fire  the  entrance  to  the  harbor.  While, 
however,  in  the  act  of  tracing  the  exact  position  for  his 
new  entrenchment,  a  cannon  ball  fired  from  St.  Angelo 
killed  his  chief  engineer  by  his  side  and  wounded  him 
severely  in  his  right  ear.  He  fell  suddenly,  and  blood 
flowed  rapidly  from  his  nose  and  mouth.  Mustapha 
Pacha,  who  was  with  him,  ordered  that  a  cloak  should 
be  tlarbwn  over  him  to  conceal  his  wound  from  the 
soldiers,  and  that  he  should  be  borne  to  his  tent ;  and 
thus,  as  we  shall  see,  Dragut  received  his  death-wound 
in  the  act  of  suggesting  measures  which  secured  a 
victory  in  which  he  had  no  participation. 

After  an  interval  of  five  days'  rest,  Mustapha  Pacha, 
well  assured  that  those  active  and  energetic  plans  of  his 
colleague  had  prevented  any  introduction  of  fresh 
troops  into  St.  Elmo,  determined,  on  Friday  the  22nd 
of  June,  to  lead  his  army  to  another  general  assault. 
Confident,  however,  as  he  felt  of  victory,  he  learnt  to 
his  cost  that  the  victory  was  not  on  that  day  to  be  won. 
Three  several  times  did  his  bravest  Janizzaries  mount 
to  the  assault,  and  three  separate  times  were  they 
driven  back  by  the  impregnable  living  barriers  of  the 
resolute  defenders  of  the  fortress.  The  Knights,  how- 
ever, knew  too  well  that  without  renewed  help  from 
their  chief  there  must  be  an  end  to  their  exertions,  and 
they  were  one  and  all  resolved  what  that  end  should  be 
—  a  hard  fight  and  honorable  death  in  combat  with  the 


168  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

foe.  At  nightfall  on  this  eventful  day  they  determined 
to  make  one  last  effort  to  communicate  with  Valette,  to 
state  to  him  their  intentions  and  to  receive  his  orders. 
They  entrusted  a  letter  to  a  strong  swimmer,  who  clev- 
erly escaped  the  many  dangers  of  his  perilous  and 
spirited  attempt,  and  reached  St.  Angelo  in  safety. 

Valette  and  his  companions  could  not  resist  so  urgent 
and  pathetic  an  appeal  from  friends  so  dear  and  brave. 
He  determined  to  hope  against  hope,  and  without  de- 
lay, under  cover  of  the  night,  attempted  to  reach  St. 
Elmo,  to  remove  or  to  reinforce  its  garrison.  He  des- 
patched five  large  transports  filled  with  his  bravest  and 
trustiest  commanders  and  soldiers.  His  intention  was 
quickly  discovered.  The  new  battery  designed  by 
Dragut  sounded  out  the  loud  note  of  warning.  The 
whole  cliff  was  at  once  alive  with  the  musketry  of 
the  arquebusiers.  The  guns  of  the  cordon  of  ships 
opened  upon  his  crews,  and  so  great  was  the  opposition 
to  his  venture,  that  his  transports  were  driven  back 
with  their  noble  enterprise  unaccomplished.  The  at- 
tempt at  rescue,  and  its  failure,  were  quickly  known  at 
St.  Elmo,  and  the  Sea-Kings,  defenders  of  the  fort, 
acknowledged  to  each  other  that  their  last  days  on 
earth  were  numbered.  They  determined  to  spend 
them  like  Christian  men.  Seldom  has  a  more  solemn 
and  affecting  scene  been  recorded  in  the  long  annals  of 
human  history.  These  last  survivors  of  a  band  of 


FAME   AND  HEROISM.  169 

heroes,  wounded  in  limb,  scarred  in  face,  wan  and  pale 
with  days  of  care  and  nights  of  watching,  met  for 
the  last  time  for  the  sacred  offices  of  religion  in  a  small 
but  picturesque  vaulted  chapel  within  the  fort.  Aban- 
doning all  expectation  of  deliverance,  surrendering 
every  hope  of  life,  they  prepared  themselves  with  calm 
confidence  for  their  mournful  but  inevitable  fate.  Mu- 
tually "confessing  their  faults,  and  saluting  each  other 
with  sad  and  affectionate  embraces,  they  communicated 
together  in  the  office  of  the  mass,  and  interchanged 
their  vows  to  accept  no  conditions  of  surrender,  but  to 
die  together  in  defence  of  their  Faith  and  Order.  At 
the  conclusion  of  that  touching  ceremony,  there  was  yet 
another  duty  almost  more  affecting  to  be  fulfilled. 
Many  in  this  band  of  surviving  warriors  were  so  blinded 
or  otherwise  injured  by  their  wounds  that  they  could 
not  walk  by  themselves.  Others  were  so  weak  that 
they  could  only  be  moved  on  chairs  or  litters,  yet  all 
these  insisted  on  being  so  placed  that  they  might  take  a 
part,  however  small,  in  this  last  final  defence  of  their 
citadel ;  and  it  was  the  trying  task  of  the  uninjured  to 
convey  their  sick  companions  to  the  breach,  that  each 
might  there  meet  his  end  in  harness,  and  lie  down 
at  the  last  on  his  bed  of  honor. 

"  Though  few  their  numbers,  theirs  the  strife 
That  neither  spares  nor  speaks  for  life."  * 

•  Byron,  Giaour. 


170  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

With  the  morning's  early  dawn  of  Saturday,  June 
23rd,  the  Turkish  host  again  rushed  to  the  assault  with 
a  reckless  impetuosity  which  betokened  an  assurance  of 
victory.  The  Christian  band  of  heroes,  too  reduced  in 
numbers  to  maintain  the  outworks,  awaited  the  attack 
in  a  collected  body  at  the  breach.  Each  and  all  de- 
fended themselves  with  a  marvelous  courage  only  in- 
spired by  a  contempt  of  life  and  a  wish  for  death.  Some 
opposed  their  foes  by  hurling  on  them  masses  of  stone, 
with  jets  and  circlets  of  fire.  Others  rushed  forward 
into  the  serried  ranks  of  the  masses,  as  if  assured  of  an- 
other victory.  Others,  who  could  not  stand  or  walk, 
fired  with  their  muskets,  while  some  whose  powder 
failed  obtained  a  supply  from  the  pouches  of  their  slain 
companions.  At  last,  after  a  contest  sustained  against 
immensely  disproportionate  numbers  for  the  almost  in- 
credible space  of  four  hours,  the  defenders  found  them- 
selves reduced  to  the  small  band  of  sixty  persons.  But 
even  this  little  company,  inflamed  with  a  despair  of  life, 
made  tfyeir  enemies  fear  them.  Chevalier  La  Mirande, 
the  chief  commander  of  the  Knights  of  Spain,  the  high- 
est officer  left  in  the  fort,  who  had  distinguished  himself 
throughout  the  whole  protracted  siege,  seeing  that  the 
breach  was  about  to  be  forced,  rallied  his  soldiers,  and 
encouraged  them  to  exert  themselves,  and  to  prolong 
the  defence.  They,  in  obedience  to  his  wish, 


FAME  AND  HEROISM.  171 

"  Within  a  narrower  ring  compressed,  beset, 
Hopeless,  not  heartless,  strive  and  struggle  yet. 
Ah!  now  they  fight  in  firmest  file  no  more, 
Hemm'd  in,  cut  off,  cleft  down,  and  trampled  o'er; 
But  each  strikes  singly,  silently,  and  home, 
And  sinks  outwearied  rather  than  o'ercome; 
His  last  faint  quittance  rendering  with  his  breath, 
Till  the  blade  glimmers  in  the  grasp  of  death."  * 

Bacha  Mustapha,  finding  the  breach  so  nobly  held  by 
the  small  band  of  surviving  warriors,  and  dreading  the 
effects  of  their  furious  courage,  recalled  by  sound  of 
trumpet  his  men  from  the  attack,  and  thus  paid  a  final 
compliment  to  the  heroism  of  his  opponents.  It  might 
have  been  supposed  that  the  Ottoman  leader,  overcome 
by  the  manliness  of  his  foe,  might  have  offered  such 
terms  as  honorable  men  could  have  accepted.  No  such 
thoughts  entered  into  his  mind.  The  purpose  of  his 
temporary  cessation  of  the  conflict  was  soon  apparent. 
He  had  withdrawn  his  troops  for  no  chivalrous  purpose, 
but  that  he  might  place  his  marksmen  on  every  ravelin, 
bastion,  rampart,  and  coign  of  vantage  he  had  gained, 
so  that  his  arquebusiers  at  a  safe  distance  might  fire  upon 
their  prey.  Many  of  the  survivors  thus  fell  under  the 
distant  fire  of  their  enemy.  At  the  hour  of  eleven, 
five  hours  after  the  commencement  of  this  last  struggle, 
the  Turkish  host  again  renewed  the  attack,  with  frantic 
cries  of  gratified  hatred  and  revenge.  La  Miraude, 
D'Eguerras,  and  their  few  remaining  soldiers,  over- 
*  Corsair. 


172  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

whelmed  with  the  multitude  of  their  assailants,  died 
boldly  at  their  posts;  and  that  terrible  final  assault  was 
only  ended  by  the  want  of  combatants,  and  by  the  death 
in  the  breach  of  the  last  Christian  soldier.* 

This  dearly-bought  triumph  was  celebrated  by  the 
Moslem  with  firing  of  cannon,  the  loud  fanfarons  of  the 
trumpet,  and  the  tumultuous  acclamations  of  the  host. 
Pacha  Mustapha  sent  some  officers  of  high  rank  to  an- 
nounce to  Dragut  the  capture  of  the  fort.  They  found 
the  chieftain  in  the  last  agony  of  death.  A  momentary 
gleam  of  satisfaction  on  his  countenance,  and  the  raising 
of  his  hands  towards  heaven,  as  in  token  of  gratitude, 
were  the  only  signs  he  gave  of  his  conciousness  of  the 
glad  tidings  brought  to  him,  and  then  with  one  sigh  ex- 
pired. This  possession  of  St.  Elmo,  the  weakest,  most 
isolated,  and  unprotected  of  the  forts  of  Malta,  was 
dearly  purchased,  by  the  wound  of  Piali,  the  death  of 
Dragut,  who  had  the  wisest  head  and  the  boldest  heart 
of  all  in  that  mighty  host,  and  in  the  loss  of  8,000  of  the 
best  soldiers  of  the  Sultan.  The  Knights  and  their  men- 
at-arms  who  perished  in  the  conflict  were  numbered  at 
1,300.  These  brave  men  died  nobly  in  the  performance 

*  Tliis  fearful  assault  only  came  to  an  end  for  want  of  combatants,  and 
by  the  death  of  the  very  last  Knight.  Such  are  the  words  of  Yertot,  the 
historian  of  the  Order,  Lib.  XII.,  siib  fine.  Some  accounts  state  that  a  few 
soldiers  escaped  by  swimming  to  Fort  St.  Angelo,  and  that  nine  were  cap- 
tured by  the  galleys  set  to  watch  the  coast  from  St.  Elmo  to  the  Great  Har- 
bor. The  narrative  of  Vertot  seems  most  worthy  of  credit 


FAME  AND   HEROISM.  173 

of  their  duty.  Their  heroic  resolution  and  disinterested 
self-sacrifice  secured  the  safety  of  their  island  and  the 
eventual  defeat  of  the  Ottoman  expedition.  They  en- 
couraged their  companions  to  an  emulation  of  their 
virtues,  and  have  left  to  the  end  of  all  time  a  memorable 
example  of  patient  suffering,  of  high-souled  patriotism, 
an<5  of  the  rewards  and  honors  ever  rendered  to  a  stead- 
fast perseverance  in  the  known  path  of  duty. 

"  How  blest  are  they  who  sink  to  rest, 
With  all  their  country's  wishes  blest! "  * 

Many  sad  reprisals  accompanied  the  termination  of 
this  first  act  in  the  drama  of  which  Malta  was  now  the 
scene.  Pacha  Mustapha  is  reported  to  have  gashed  the 
bodies  of  the  Knights  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  and  to  have 
fastened  them  headless  upon  wooden  crosses  nailed  to 
heavy  planks,  and  so  to  have  floated  them  into  the 
Great  Harbor,  to  be  seen  by  Valette  and  his  Brother- 
hood. 

"  "With  barb'rous  blows  they  gash  the  dead, 
And  lop  th'  already  lifeless  head."  f 

The  Grand  Master  is  said,  in  his  turn,  under  an  ex- 
asperation at  witnessing  these  cruelties,  to  have  mur- 
dered his  Turkish  prisoners  and  to  have  fired  their  heads 
from  his  cannon  into  the  Moslem  entrenchments  on 
Mount  Sceberras.  The  dictates  of  charity  suggest  a 
hope  that  there  is  no  trutli  in  these  stories,  so  revolting 

•  Colling.  t  Byron,  Siege  of  Corinth. 


174  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

alike  to  humanity  and  civilization.  There  is  more 
reason  to  believe  the  saying  attributed  to  Mustapha  a3 
he  stood  in  saddened  triumph  on  the  ramparts  so  dearly 
gained,  and  as  he  probably  called  to  mind  the  hard-won 
possession  of  Rhodes,  "  How  much  will  the  parent  cost, 
when  the  child  which  is  so  little,  has  lost  me  so  many 
brave  soldiers ! "  What  greater  compliment  could  be 
paid  than  this  melancholy  panegyric  of  the  conqueror  to 
the  heroism  of  the  "  Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean  "  ? 


CHAPTER  IX. 

»*~  VALOR  AND  VICTORY. 

"  My  good  blade  carves  the  casques  of  men, 

My  tough  lance  thrusteth  sure ; 
My  strength  is  as  the  strength  of  ten, 
Because  my  heart  is  pure." 

Sir  Galahad— TENNYSOH. 

THE  fall  of  St.  Elmo  changed  the  whole  tactics  of  the 
siege.  John  de  la  Valette  called  together  at  once  a 
council  of  his  friends,  and  addressed  them  in  language 
worthy  of  a  Christian  soldier.  "  They  who  have  died 
so  nobly  at  St.  Elmo  have  attained  to  that  which  a  good 
knight  should  most  long  for,  a  glorious  death  in  behalf 
of  his  faith  and  country.  If  need  be,  we  will  imitate 
their  example.  But  there  is  no  cause  for  despair.  The 
number  of  the  enemy  is  diminished.  Their  army  loses 
day  by  day  from  disease.  Their  commissariat  and  am- 
munition are  being  exhausted.  The  capture  of  St. 
Elmo  will  help  them  but  little  in  their  attack  on  our 
forts.  We  may  expect  reinforcements  from  Sicily  and 
Europe,  against  which  they  will  make  no  effectual  re- 
sistance." This  address  of  their  leader  was  received 

175 


176  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

with  enthusiasm,  and  the  members  of  the  Brotherhood 
renewed  their  mutual  vows  to  defend  their  home  with 
their  lives.  Valette  did  not  only  deal  in  brave  words, 
but  performed  bold  acts  of  defiance  and  defence.  He 
called  in  a  portion  of  n.s  troops  from  Notabile,  appointed 
four  Knights,  with  the  title  "Captains  of  Succor,"  to 
render  help  wherever  it  might  be  most  needed ;  united 
the  two  sides  of  the  fortress  by  a  floating  bridge  thrown 
across  the  Port  of  the  Galleys ;  and  commanded  his  sol- 
diers to  grant  no  quarter,  partly  in  reprisal  for  the 
cruelties  exercised  at  St.  Elmo,  and  partly  in  precaution, 
lest  the  provisions  laid  up  in  store  should  fail.  Valette 
was  further  strengthened  by  the  timely  arrival,  in  this 
crisis,  of  250  gallant  soldiers  from  Sicily,  who  made  up 
to  some  slight  extent  for  his  losses  at  St.  Elmo,  and  en- 
couraged him  and  his  brave  companions  in  the  hope  of 
further  European  assistance.  Among  these  new-comers 
were  two  English  cavaliers,  whose  names  have  been  re- 
corded as  Sir  John  Smith  and  Edward  Stanley.* 

*  These  were  not  the  only  Britons  present  at  the  siege.  Sir  Oliver  Starkey. 
private  secretary  to  Valette,  and  present  throughout  all  the  events  recorded 
in  these  chapters,  \vas  an  Englishman.  He  survived  his  noble  friend  and 
patron,  and  wrote  this  epitaph  for  his  tomb :  —  * 

"Hie  Aske  Lybiseque  pavor,  tutelaque  quondam 

Europae,  edomitis  sacra  per  anna  Getis  — 
Primus  in  hac  alma  quam  condidit  urbe  sepultus 
Valette  aeterno  dignus  honore  jacet." 

"  The  terror  of  Asia  and  Africa,  the  shield  of  Europe,  the  conqueror  of  th« 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  177 

Pacha  Mustapha,  fully  conscious  of  the  peril  of  his 
situation,  and  fearful  alike  of  the  failure  of  his  own  re- 
sources at  that  distance  from  his  counCry,  and  of  the  re- 
inforcements promised  by  the  Viceroy  of  Sicily  to  his 
opponents,  was  anxious,  on  his  part,  without  procrasti- 
nation or  delay,  to  commence  further  operations.  He 
marked  out  a  line  of  trenches  completely  round  the  two 
great  fingers  of  land  occupied  by  the  main  fortress 
of  his  opponents,  and,  because  he  could  not  dig  into  the 
rock,  protected  them  with  parapets  of  earth  and  stone. 
He  compelled  his  slaves  and  sailors  to  plant  his  six- 
ty-six great  siege  pieces  in  nine  different  batteries,  in  a 
continuous  chain,  from  Corrodino,  by  Burmolt  and 
St.  Margaret's  Hill,  to  Bighi.  By  the  advice  of  his  en- 
gineers he  chose  the  Castle  of  St.  Michael,  at  the 
extremity  of  Point  Sanglea,  and  the  proximate  bastion 
of  Castile,  as  the  first  points  of  his  attack.  To  assist  in 
the  reduction  of  the  fort  of  St  Michael,  he  placed 
two  batteries  opposite  to  it ;  one  on  the  upper  cliff 
of  the  Mount  Sceberras,  the  promontory  between  the 
two  harbors ;  and  the  other  below,  on  the  margin  of  the 
water.  For  the  possession  of  the  bastion  he  depended 
on  his  batteries  on  the  steeps  of  Corrodino  and  Bur- 
Turks,  Valette,  worthy  of  eternal  fame,  was  the  first  buried  in  thia  famous 
city,  which  he  built." 

Sir  Oliver  Starkey  is  buried  by  the  side  of  Valette,  in  the  catacombs  of  St 
John's  Con-Cathedral  Church,  in  the  city  of  Valetta, 

12 


178  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

mola.  He  resorted  to  another  expedient  worthy  of 
particular  mention.  He  made  a  smooth  road  of 
planks,*  and,  by  the  assistance  of  the  crews,  soldiers, 
and  slave-rowers,  under  the  lash  of  their  severe  task- 
masters, hauled  eighty  galleys  for  nearly  two  miles, 
across  the  neck  of  laud  which  separated  the  ports  ;  and 
thus  obtained,  without  breaking  through  the  chains  and 
palisades  guarding  its  entrance,  a  perfectly  safe  access 
for  his  vessels  into  the  Great  Harbor,  and  the  important 
aid  of  the  co-operation  of  his  galleys  in  his  contem- 
plated attacks  on  the  sea-defences  at  the  fortress  at 
Point  Sanglea.  Valette  obtained  early  information  of 
this  latter  design  in  a  somewhat  remarkable  manner. 
One  day  a  Knight  named  Saroguerra,  in  the  command 
of  Fort  St.  Michael,  observed  a  man,  clad  in  the  rich 
dress  of  a  superior  officer  of  the  Turkish  army,  making 
signs  to  him  as  if  anxious  to  join  him.  He  reported  the 
matter  to  Valette,  and  asked  his  leave  to  venture  across 
the  harbor,  attended  by  his  esquire,  to  inquire  what  was 
meant.  In  the  meanwhile  the  Turkish  sentinel  had  ob- 
served the  signals,  and  had  communicated  with  -his  cap- 
tain, who  suspecting  treachery,  sent  a  band  of  soldiers 
to  bring  the  man  in  as  a  prisoner.  On  perceiving  their 

*  A  similar  expedient  was  adopted  by  Mohammed  II.  at  the  siege  of  Con- 
stantinople. He  made  "  a  smooth  road  of  planks  along  the  five  miles  of  land 
which  intervened  between  the  Bosphorus  and  the  Golden  Horn,  and  a  large 
division  of  the  Turkish  galleys  was  hauled  along  it,  and  safely  launched  in 
the  harbor." — Creasy' 8  History  of  the  Ottoman  Empire,  vol.  L,  p.  130. 


Malta.  — Page      176. 


VALOE  AND  VICTORY.  179 

approach  he  jumped  into  the  water,  and  commenced 
swimming  across,  when  three  Maltese  sailors  immediate- 
ly dived  off  Sarognerra's  boat  to  his  assistance,  and, 
with  their  aid,  in  spite  of  the  shots  of  the  Turks,  he 
reached  in  safety  the  opposite  bank.  On  being  brought 
before  the  Grand  Master  he  told  his  romantic  history. 

"  My^name  is  Lascaris.  I  was  born  a  Greek,  of  a 
noble  Christian  family.  I  was  captured  as  a  boy  at  the 
siege  of  Patras.  On  account  of  my  noble  birth  I  was 
educated  with  care,  and  trained  as  a  Janizzary,  in 
which  corps  I  am  now  a  spahi  or  captain.  I  have,  how- 
ever, never  forgotten  nor  forgiven  the  wrongs  done  to 
my  parents  and  my  country.  I  have  always  deter- 
mined, if  opportunity  permitted,  to  return  to  the  faith 
of  my  fathers  and  of  my  baptism.  If  you  will  accept 
me  into  your  ranks,  I  will  fight  by  your  side,  and  serve 
you  with  fidelity  as  long  as  I  live."  Valette  received 
him  after  this  speech  with  open  arms,  admitted  him  to 
the  order  of  knighthood,  and  found  him  a  brave  soldier 
and  wise  counsellor  throughout  the  remainder  of  the 
siege.  In  consequence  of  the  important  tidings  which 
La&caris  brought,  Valette  adopted  additional  methods 
of  defence.  He  strengthened  the  ramparts  of  St. 
Michael's  Fort,  barricaded  the  entrance  of  the  Port 
of  the  Galleys  by  a  strong  chain  stretched  from  St.  An- 
gelo  to  Sanglea,  and  protected  with  a  battery  on  either 
side;  and  constructed  a  huge  stockade  of  masts,  an- 


180  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KINGS. 

chors,  and  massive  beams,  bristling  with  long  iron 
spikes,  from  Sanglea  Point  to  the  Point  of  Corrodino,  to 
prevent  all  approach  of  the  vessels  to  the  foot  of  his 
walls  and  fortifications.  These  vast  defensive  opera- 
tions, conducted  with  the  greatest  secrecy,  and  only 
worked  at  during  the  hours  of  darkness,  were  after 
nine  nights  effectually  completed. 

This  huge  stockade  gave  rise  to  the  first  actual 
conflict  in  this  second  stage  of  the  siege.  Mustapha, 
enraged  at  finding  his  projects  thus  anticipated,  and  the 
purpose  of  his  vast  effort  in  bringing  his  galleys  into  the 
Great  Harbor  rendered  comparatively  useless,  deter- 
mined to  remove  this  formidable  impediment.  He  or- 
dered the  best  swimmers  in  his  fleet  to  arm  themselves 
with  hatchets,  and  to  remove  during  the  night  this  ob- 
stacle to  his  mauoevres.  The  noise  of  their  blows 
and  strokes  soon  made  their  movements  known  to 
the  besieged.  The  guns  of  St.  Michael's  Fort,  and  the 
fire  from  the  bastion,  opened  upon  them,  but  they  could 
not  be  made  to  reach  so  low  a  level.  The  Maltese 
sailors,  on  this  being  known,  leapt  at  once  naked  into 
the  water,. with  their  bhort  swords  in  their  mouths,  and 
attacked  the  hatchet-men  with  the  utmost  impetuosity. 
This  singular  episode  in  naval  warfare  —  this  unique 
contest  of  naked  men  in  the  water  by  moonlight  — 
lasted  but  a  short  time.  The  hatchet-men,  after  a  brief 
but  desperate  struggle,  were  obliged  to  }rield  to  the 


VALOR  AND  VICTOEY.  181 

skill  and  superior  swimming  of  their  opponents,  and  the 
stockade  was  saved. 

Mustapha  attempted  on  the  following  night  to  affect, 
by  cunning,  what  he  had  failed  to  do  by  force.  He 
again  sent  his  swimmers  in  the  darkness  to  fasten 
strong  ropes  and  cables  to  the  stockade,  in  the  hope  of 
destroying  it  piecemeal  by  tearing  away  separate  por- 
tions of  it  without  noise  and  without  discovery.  The 
watchfulness  of  the  sentinels  quickly  gave  the  alarm, 
and  the  Maltese  swimmers  again  challenged  their  oppo- 
nents, and  cut  away  the  ropes  and  cables  with  swords 
and  knives. 

Four  full  weeks  bad  now  passed  since  the  fall  of  St. 
Elmo,  and  towards  the  end  of  July  Mustapha  opened 
fire  from  his  batteries  in  the  first  general  bombardment 
of  the  fortress.  From  all  the  neighboring  heights,  Cor- 
rodino,  Burmola,  St.  Margaret,"  and  Calcara,  one  inter- 
mittent circle  of  fire  blazed  around  the  forts  and  town. 
Some  damage  was  done  to  the  walls,  but  not  enough,  in 
Mustapha's  opinion,  to  justify  an  immediate  assault. 
In  this  position  of  affairs,  the  Turkish  camp  and  gen- 
eral were  greatl}'  enlivened  and  encouraged  by  the  arri- 
val of  a  powerful  ally.  Hassein,  the  young  ruler  of 
Algiers,  son  of  the  famous  Corsair  Barbarossa,  and  son- 
in-law  of  Dragut,  sailed  into  Marsa  Muscetto  Harbor 
with  a  contingent  of  2,500  veteran  troops,  who  had  by 
their  valor  in  many  a  hard-fought  naval  battle  earned 


182  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

for  themselves  the  honorable  appellation  of  "  the  brave 
Algerines."  Both  they  and  their  youthful  leader  were 
inflamed  with  the  most  .vehement  desire  to  wrest  from 
their  rivals  the  supreme  dominion  in  the  Mediterranean, 
and  more  especially  to  avenge  the  death  of  Dragut. 
Hassein,  shortly  after  his  disembarkation,  entreated 
Mustapha  to  grant  him  permission  to  make  an  assault 
upon  the  fortress,  and  confidently  assured  him  of  the 
certainty  of  his  success.  The  Pacha  complied  with  his 
request,  and  entrusted  him  with  4,000  soldiers  of  the 
Sultan  in  addition  to  his  own  Algerines.  Hassein  ar- 
ranged for  a  twofold  attack.  He  appointed  Canelissa, 
his  chief  Admiral,  to  conduct  the  marine  troops  against 
Fort  St.  Michael,  while  he  himself  led  an  assault 
from  the  mainland  against  the  other  extremity  of 
Sanglea,  the  bastion  of  Castile. 

No  circumstance  nor  ceremony  was  omitted  which 
could  give  dignity  to  this  occasion,  or  increase  the  confi- 
dence or  indignation  of  the  soldiers.  The  vessels  con- 
veyed across  the  neck  of  Mount  Sceberras  were  now  for 
the  first  time  brought  into  use.  This  fleet  of  eighty 
galleys  moved  at  the  break  of  dawn  from  its  moorings, 
and  made  ready  for  its  part  in  the  conflict.  Its  ad- 
vance was  conducted  with  all  the  solemnity  of  a 
religious  procession,  as  if  the  warriors  on  board  were 
about  to  perform  an  act  of  pious  duty  in  avenging 
on  their  enemies  the  loss  of  their  chief.  A  long  low 


VALOR   AND   VICTOBY.  183 

barge  was  rowed  first,  which  conveyed  a  large  company 
of  Mufti  and  Marabouts,  Mahometan  ministers  of  relig- 
ion. These  men,  arrayed  in  their  rich  sacred  robes, 
were  divided  into  two  lines  of  several  ranks  along  each 
side  of  the  vessel.  With  loud  alternate  voices  they 
chanted  their  prayers  and  invocations  for  a  blessing 
on  tfee"  standards  of  their  countrymen,  or  read  from  the 
Koran  imprecations  on  the  Christians.  On  the  cessa- 
tion of  these  litanies  there  next  arose  from  all  parts 
of  that  splendid  armament  a  mighty  swell  of  military 
music.  Drums,  cymbals,  fifes,  and  trumpets  joined  in 
the  loud  alarum,  and  stirred  with  inspiriting  strains  the 
hearts  of  the  assailants.  Then  arose  the  wild  shout 
of  the  soldiers  : — 

"  Vengeance  was  the  word: 
From  man  to  man  and  rank  to  rank  it  passed, 
By  every  heart  enforced,  by  every  voice 
Sent  forth  in  loud  defiance  of  the  foe."  * 

Canelissa,  in  the  first  place,  drove  his  foremost  gal- 
leys, with  all  the  collected  strength  of  his  rowers, 
against  the  stockade  between  Sanglea  and  Corrodino,  as 
if  the  might  of  his  will  must  command  and  enforce  a 
passage.  His  effort  was  in  vain.  He  next  endeavored 
to  turn  this  stockade  to  his  advantage,  and,  by  plank- 
ing it  over  with  boards  and  beams,  to  use  it  as  a  bridge 
by  which  he  might  lead  his  soldiers  to  the  foot  of 
the  ramparts.  This  device,  though,  cleverly  designed, 
*  Klwderick,  714. 


184  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

and  courageously  attempted,  was  also  unsuccessful. 
The  boards  were  too  short  to  reach  the  required  dis- 
tance, and  the  chevaux  de  frise  were  so  unevenly  made 
that  they  could  uot  be  balanced,  and,  in  addition  to 
this,  the  troops  were  exposed  to  so  fierce  a  fusillade 
that  no  hardihood  could  stand  against  it.  Canelissa, 
however,  as  if  inspired  by  the  very  breath  of  the  battle, 
had  discovered,  with  an  eagle  glance,  that  there  was 
a  space  between  the  fort  and  stockade  at  which  it 
was  possible  to  obtain  a  footing  for  himself  and  troops. 
He  boldly  advanced  to  the  spot,  effected  a  landing  with 
a  body  of  his  Algerines,  and  then,  either  in  a  spirit 
of  vain  glory  or  presumptuous  courage,  or  in  a  moment 
of  infatuation,  ordered  his  boats  to  retreat,  and  to 
leave  him  and  his  men  upon  the  shore.  The  African 
Corsairs,  thoroughly  habituated  to  this  mode  of  war- 
fare, and  animated  by  the  presence  and  example  of 
their  chief,  with  their  scimitars  in  the  one  hand,  and 
their  scaling  ladders  in  the  other*exerted  themselves  to 
the  utmost  to  climb  the  ramparts.  The  contest  in 
this  close  conflict  with  their  adversaries  was  long 
and  sanguinary, 

"  The  crags  are  red  they've  clambered  o'er, 
The  rock-weed  'a  dripping  -with  their  gore; "  • 

but  in  the  end  the  mad  fury  of  the  Algerines  overcame 

all  resistance,  and  for  a  time  they  were  masters  of  the 

*  Moore's  Fire  Worshipers. 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  185 

lower  platform  of  the  fort,  and  planted  their  standards 
in  triumph  on  the  wall  of  St.  Michael's. 

Pacha  Mustapha,  who  had  anxiously  watched  the 
progress  of  his  ally,  despatched  ten  galleys  laden  with 
fresh  troops  to  his  assistance.  These  boats  never 
reached  their  destination.  By  some  mismanagement 
they-were  steered  within  point-blank  range  of  the  can- 
non of  St.  Angelo,  and  the  commander  of  that  fort,  by  a 
well-directed  discharge  of  his  guns,  sank  the  larger  part 
of  the  vessels,  and  destroyed  their  crews.  This  incident 
imparted  encouragement  to  the  Knights,  and  struck  dis- 
may into  the  hearts  of  their  opponents.  The  gallant 
Monte,  the  commander  of  Fort  St.  Michael,  being 
strengthened  by  the  presence  of  Valette,  and  of  some 
of  his  Captains  of  Succors,  with  their  soldiers,  turned 
upon  Canelissa  and  his  Algerines  with  redoubled  deter- 
mination, and,  after  a  severe  struggle,  drove  them  head- 
long from  the  platform.  The  chieftain,  who  was  fore- 
most in  the  attack,  was  the  first  in  flight.  Afraid  of 
falling  into  the  hands  of  adversaries  who  gave  no  quar- 
ter, he  retreated  with  the  utmost  precipitation,  and 
leaped  into  the  water  to  save  his  life.  The  Algerines 
followed  in  pell-mell  confusion.  Each  strove  in  his 
panic  to  outstrip  his  companion  in  the  quickness  of  his 
flight.  Without  boats,  shelter,  or  means  of  resistance, 
they  were  slain  by  the  sharp  knives  and  poignards  of 
the  Maltese  swimmers,  who  pursued  them  in  the  water, 


186  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

or  were  destroyed  by  the  arrows  of  the  cross-bowmen, 
or  shot  by  the  musketry  from  the  ramparts.  In  vain 
did  they  plead  for  mercy,  and  clasp,  in  their  agony,  the 
hands  of  their  foemen.  The  only  answer  was  the  death- 
stroke,  with  the  stern  words  of  indignant  retribution, 
"  St.  Elmo !  St.  Elmo !  the  pay  of  St.  Elmo !  "  The 
host  on  which  that  morning  sun  had  shone,  gay  in  its 
panoply  of  war,  mad  in  its  anticipation  of  revenge, 
reckless  in  its  taunting  challenge  to  its  foes,  was  driven 
back  at  noon  a  baffled,  broken,  and  disordered  rabble. 
The  terrible  carnage  may  well  be  described  in  the  burn- 
ing words  of  the  poet,  recounting  the  discomfiture  of 
the  Gheber  soldiery  by  the  bands  of  Hafed  — 

"What  ruin  glares!  what  carnage  swims! 
Heads,  blazing  turbans,  quivering  limbs; 
Lost  swords  that  dn»t  from  many  a  hand 
In  that  thick  pool  of  slaughter  stand. 
"Wretches  who  wading,  half  on.  fire, 

From  the  tossed  brands  that  round  them  fly; 
'Twixt  flood  and  flame  in  shrieks  expire; 

And  some,  who,  grasp'd  by  those  that  die, 
Sink  woundless  with  them,  smother' d  o'er 
In  their  dead  brethren's  gushing  gore."  * 

While  this  fierce  contest  was  waged  by  Canelissa 
on  the  shore,  a  no  less  furious  assault  was  made  by 
Hassein  on  the  mainland.  He  did  not  fare  better  at 
the  bastion  than  his  lieutenant  on  the  beach.  Supported 

*  Moore's  Fire  Worshipers,  274. 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  187 

by  his  bold  Algerines,  he  gained  the  summit  of  the 
breach,  but  could  advance  no  further.  The  serried 
ranks  of  warriors,  who  defended  the  gaping  chasms  in 
their  walls,  proved  a  barrier  of  mail  he  could  not  pass. 
In  vain  were  his  prayers,  menaces,  and  promises.  In 
vain  his  appeal  to  the  memory  of  Dragut,  and  to  the 
vengeance  due  to  his  wrongs.  His  experienced  veterans 
found  an  opposition  with  which  they  were  hitherto  un- 
acquainted. Time  after  time  they  rushed  to  the  assault, 
time  after  time  were  they  driven  back,  till  at  last  they 
retreated,  with  thinned  and  disordered  ranks,  and  con- 
fessed their  inability  to  wrest  the  coveted  stronghold 
from  the  foe. 

The  events  of  this  exciting  day  were  not  concluded 
with  this  two-fold  defeat  of  the  invaders  by  sea  and 
land.  Mustapha,  desirous  to  achieve  a  triumph  where 
his  allies  had  failed,  and  anxious  to  strike  a  blow  before 
his  enemies  had  recovered  from  the  fatigue  and  weari- 
ness consequent  on  their  unparalleled  exertions,  deter- 
mined to  make  a  third  immediate  attack,  and  hoped,  by 
the  numbers  of  his  troops  not  hitherto  engaged,  to  pre- 
vail in  the  assault.  In  the  afternoon  heat  of  that  mid- 
summer day,  within  five  hours  of  the  retreat  of  Hassein 
and  Canelissa,  he  marshalled  his  Janizzaries,  and  led 
them  in  person  to  the  breach.  Prodigious  efforts  were 
made  on  either  side.  The  Sultan's  soldiers,  emulous  of 
success  where  their  Algerine  auxiliaries  had  failed,  re- 


188  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

newed  the  attack  again  and  again.  Combatant  met 
combatant  in  single  contest,  and  the  point  of  the  dagger 
was  the  final  arbiter  of  the  fight ;  yet  the  Sea-Kings,  in 
their  serried  ranks  and  brazen  panoply,  careless  alike  of 
hunger  or  thirst,  sealed  by  a  sense  of  duty  against 
weariness  or  complaining,  persevered  in  holding  their 
own  with  untiring  intrepidity.  At  last,  with  the 
lengthening  shades  of  evening,  the  Turks  retired  from 
the  struggle,  repulsed  for  the  third  time  on  that  hard- 
fought  day.  The  fiery  valor  of  Valette,  the  concentrated 
courage  of  his  companions,  the  vigorous  co-operation  of 
the  unarmed  inhabitants  of  the  town,  who  assisted  their 
brave  defenders  by  bringing  them  refreshments  in  the 
strife,  and  by  preparing  ammunition,  and  all  those  fiery 
projectiles  of  offensive  warfare  rendered  so  familiar  in 
the  narrative  of  the  capture  of  St.  Elmo,  had  again  pre- 
vailed. Who  can  realize  the  mixed  feelings  which,  at 
the  close  of  that  long  day,  must  have  prevailed  in  the 
mind  of  the  victorious  Grand  Master?  Which  most 
preponderated  —  satisfaction  at  his  resistance,  still  suc- 
cessfully maintained,  regret  at  the  loss  of  so  many 
valiant  and  beloved  companions,  or  fearful  anticipations 
about  the  future  ?  In  the  midst  of  his  perplexities  he 
must  have  experienced  one  source  of  unmixed  consola- 
tion, that  on  that  day  he  had  nobly  done  his  duty. 

"Example  is  a  living  law,  whose  sway 
Men  more  than  all  the  written  laws  obey."  • 

*  Sedley. 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  189 

The  next  few  days  after  this  great  effort  were  passed 
in  comparative  inaction.  Mustapha,  in  the  hope  of 
bringing  his  battery  nearer  to  the  Castile  bastion, 
erected  on  Burmola  the  large  wooden  framework  which 
he  had  brought  from  the  arsenals  at  Constantinople. 
Valette,  alarmed  at  the  near  proximity  of  this  monster 
apparatus  to  his  walls,  sent  out  on  two  successive 
nights  a  band  of  trusty  soldiers  to  destroy  it.  His  at- 
tempts were  on  each  occasion  frustrated  by  the  vigi- 
lance and  numbers  of  the  Turks.  At  last  he  deter- 
mined to  overturn  it  with  the  advantage  of  daylight, 
and  appointed  to  this  service  his  own  nephew,  Henry 
de  Valette,  a  most  gallant  and  spirited  Sea-King,  and 
his  brave  friend  and  companion,  Chevalier  Polastra. 
These  two  noble  youths  succeeded  in  reaching  the 
works  of  the  battery,  and  in  placing  their  ropes  and 
grappling-hooks  on  the  wooden  framework,  but,  being 
unsupported  by  their  musqueteers  and  men-at-arms, 
were  both  killed.  Then  ensued  a  brief  but  most  des- 
perate struggle.  The  Janizzaries,  anxious  to  secure 
the  reward  set  by  their  general  on  the  head  of  every 
Knight,  and  the  men-at-arms,  stung  to  the  quick  at  the 
death,  by  their  remissness  and  fault,  of  two  brave  and 
beloved  leaders,  were  equally  determined  to  gain  pos- 
session of  the  bodies.  The  Christian  soldiers  prevailed 
in  the  contest,  and  carried  away  in  honorable  safety  the 
corpses  of  the  heroes.  Valette,  watching  from  the  ram- 


190  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

part  the  result  of  the  sortie,  was  well  aware  of  the  fate 
of  his  nephew,  and  went  forth  to  meet  the  sad  proces- 
sion bearing  the  lifeless  burdens  to  the  walls.  Al- 
though the  brave  old  man  loved  his  nephew  as  the 
apple  of  his  eye,  he  shed  no  tear  nor  uttered  any  voice 
of  lamentation.  He  calmly  replied  in  these  majestic 
words  to  the  sympathy  of  his  companions :  "  Believe 
me,  all  my  Knights  are  equally  dear  to  me.  They  are 
all  my  children.  I  grieve  for  Polastra  as  much  as  for 
Henry.  And  after  all,  I  have  no  cause  for  sorrow.  I 
shall  probably  be  as  they  are  in  a  few  days.  If  succors 
do  not  soon  come,  I  shall  not  Jive.  Should  the  fortress 
fall,  I  shall  rush  sword  in  hand  upon  the  thickest  of 
the  foe,  and  find  my  sepulchre  in  its  ruins."  The 
Grand  Master  that  night  avenged  his  nephew  by  a  suc- 
cessful destruction  of  the  apparatus,  in  attempting  to 
overturn  which  he  so  gallantly  sacrificed  his  life. 

Pacha  Mustapha,  after  consultation  with  Hassein, 
Canelissa,  and  Piali,  who  had  now  recovered  of  his 
wound,  determined  on  making  a  general  and  simulta- 
neous assault  on  every  side  of  the  fortress.  Tuesday, 
the  7th  day  of  August,  was  fixed  upon  for  this  mo- 
mentous undertaking.  On  the  morning  of  that  day 
extreme  life  and  excitement  pervaded  the  Moslem 
camp.  The  whole  army  was  astir.  The  gathered  com- 
panies of  the  Turkish  marines,  under  the  command  of 
Piali,  made  an  attack  upon  Borgo  and  its  neighboring 


VALOR  AND  VICTOET.  191 

ramparts,  defended  by  the  Knights  of  France,  Provence, 
and  Auvergne.  The  previously  attempted  bastion  of 
Castile  was  again  assaulted  by  Prince  Hassein  and  the 
thinned  ranks  of  his  veteran  Algerines. 

These  onsets,  however,  though  designed  as  portions 
of  the  general  assault  to  occupy  the  attention  of  the 
besieged,  were  only  false  and  feigned  issues  of  the 
operations.  The  real  design  aimed  at  was  the  posses- 
sion of  Fort  St.  Michael.  Against  this  castle  Mustapha 
led  in  person  the  best  of  his  troops.  Rank  upon  rank 
of  Janizzaries,  arrayed  in  their  brilliantly-colored  tur- 
bans and  rich  robes,  and  divided  into  their  companies 
of  archers,  arquebusiers,  and  swordsmen,  with  pennons 
waving  and  trumpets  braying,  rushed  impetuously,  with 
frantic  shouts,  towards  the  fort.  The  leading  columns 
were  broken  by  a  discharge  of  the  large  guns  and  by 
the  musketry  from  the  walls.  Heedless  of  the  fall  of 
their  companions,  the  soldiers  continued  their  advance, 
and  gained  possession  of  the  breach;  and  here  they 
were  brought  into  immediate  collision  with  the  stalwart 
phalanx  of  the  Knights  and  of  their  mailed  chivalry. 
For  four  long  hours  the  combat  raged  with  various 
alternations  of  success.  Large  numbers  of  the  towns- 
men and  of  the  women  took  part  in  the  contest,  and 
hurled  from  the  ramparts  burning  oil  and  hoops  of  fire. 
The  Turks,  enraged  at  the  injuries  inflicted  on  them, 
hacked,  hewed,  and  killed,  without  distinction  of  sex, 


192  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

all  whom  they  could  reach.  Mustapha,  with  sword  in 
hand,  persevered  in  maintaining  his  hold  upon  the 
breach,  and  being  manfully  supported  by  his  soldiers 
(who  fought  with  an  enthusiastic  resolution,  as  if  the 
victory  depended  on  the  exertion  of  each  single  arm), 
was  just  on  the  point  of  driving  back  his  opponents, 
worn  out  by  the  agony  of  a  contest  maintained  by  so 
few  against  so  many,  when  a  shout  of  despair,  heard 
above  all  the  tumult  of  the  battle,  fell  upon  his  ear. 
Fugitives  from  his  camp  rushed  in  the  madness  of 
panic-fear  among  his  troops,  and  announced  evil  tidings 
of  defeat  and  massacre  from  a  new  and  unlooked-for 
army.  Mustapha  sounded  a  retreat,  and  called  back 
his  soldiers  in  the  very  blossom  and  assurance  of  their 
triumphant  possession  of  Fort  St.  Michael.  He  soon 
found  that  there  was  no  occasion  for  alarm, 

"  And  blushes  o'er  his  error,  as  he  eyes 
The  ruin  wrought  by  terror  and  surprise."  * 

The  stampedo  of  his  people  was  quickly  accounted  for. 
A  few  soldiers  from  No  labile  had  attacked  his  tents 
and  slain  the  sentinels  during  the  absence  of  the  troops, 
and  this  simple  incident  had  been  magnified  into  a  new 
army  of  European  reinforcements.  This  diversion  of 
their  friends  saved  the  brave  Sea-Kings  in  this  hour 
of  extremity.  Mustapha  never  again  found  himself  so 
near  the  goal  of  his  hopes  and  the  accomplishment 
of  his  ambition. 

*  Byron,  Corsair. 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  193 

The  failure  of  this  great  effort  had  an  injurious  effect 
upon  the  Moslem  soldiery.  Fatalist  in  their  opinions, 
apt  to  judge  of  the  final  issue  of  events  by  the  temporary 
omens  of  a  present  good  or  evil,  short  of  provisions, 
visited  with  disease,  encamped  upon  a  bare  rock  with- 
out shade  or  shelter,  they  began  to  despair  of  success. 
Nor  was  Mustapha,  on  his  part,  desirous  to  incur  at 
once  the  chance  of  another  repulse.  His  real  hope  lay 
in  his  superiority  of  numbers.  His  policy  was  to  weary 
out  his  opponents,  and  to  exhaust  their  strength,  so 
that  they  should  become  too  weak  and  weary  to  con- 
tinue their  resistance.  He  did  not  in  most  cases  allow 
his  soldiers  to  proceed  to  the  assault,  nor  to  mount  the 
breach,  nor  to  engage  in  actual  conflict,  but  he  mada 
them  keep  their  opponents  in  a  constant  state  of  alarm, 
by  frequent  cannonades  from  the  batteries,  by  pretend- 
ed assaults,  by  cries  of  threatened  onset,  and  thus 
compelled  them  to  an  incessant  watchfulness  by  night- 
and  by  day. 

On  two  occasions  only  were  these  feigned  encounters 
changed  into  real  ones.  On  Saturday,  the  18th  of 
August,  precisely  at  noon,  in  the  very  hottest  part 
of  the  day,  when  it  was  known  that  the  brave  cham- 
pions of  the  Cross  would  be,  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  country,  at  their  midday  meal,  or  resting  from 
their  fatigue  beneath  the  shade  of  their  walls,  a  sudden 
assault  was  made  on  the  two  weak  points,  Fort  St.  Mi- 
13 


194  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

chael  and  the  bastion  of  Castile.  The  garrison  was 
for  once  fairly  surprised.  Valette  was  in  the  Church 
of  the  Borgo,  kneeling  in  prayer,  «s  was  his  wont  at 
this  hour,  when  the  great  bell  of  the  building  tolled  out 
the  well-known  signal  announcing  an  attack.  So  rapid 
and  unlooked-for  was  the  onset  of  the  Turks,  that  they 
had  reached  the  summit  of  the  breach  in  the  Castile 
bastion  without  resistance.  An  ecclesiastic  of  the 
Church  of  San  Lorenzo,  where  Valette  was  kneeling, 
rushed  in  with  the  evil  tidings  that  the  bastion  was 
taken,  and  cried  to  the  Grand  Master  to  secure  his 
safety  in  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  not  far  from  the 
'church.  Valette,  not  stopping  to  examine  the  truth  of 
this  story,  but  taking  in  haste  his  sword  and  hat  from 
the  pages  in  attendance,  summoning  his  "  Captains  of 
the  Succors"  to  the  rescue,  and  collecting,  as  he  passed, 
as  many  followers  as  he  could,  set  upon  the  foe  with  so 
much  vehemence,  that  he  drove  them  from  the  rampart, 
and  once  more  secured  the  continued  safety  of  the 
fortress.* 

Some  kindly  hand  in  the  Ottoman  camp  gave  timely 
warning  of  the  second  of  these  assaults.  An  arrow 
shot  into  the  fortress,  inscribed  with  the  word  "  Thurs- 
day," caused  Valette  to  believe  that  another  attack  was 
to  be  made  on  that  day.  The  rumor  of  this  intended 

•"This  very  hat  and  sword  of  Valette  are  still  preserved  in  this  churcb  of 
Bt  Lawrence,  in  the  Borgo,  in  Vittoriosa. 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  195 

onset  spread  with  the  rapidity  of  wild-fire  throughout 
the  garrison,  and  reached  the  Knights  and  soldiers  in 
the  Infirmary,  whereupon  these  sick  and  wounded  men, 
emulous  of  the  fame  and  fate  of  their  brethren  at  St. 
Elmo,  insisted,  one  and  all,  in  "being  at  their  posts  of 
duty  upon  the  ramparts,  declaring  that  they  preferred 
to  clie  in  the  breach,  rather  than  to  be  murdered  in 
their  beds  by  a  victorious  and  vindictive  foe. 

The  anticipations  of  Valette  were  verified.  On 
Thursday,  August  23rd,  the  fortress  was  again  exposed 
to  the  fury  of  a  second  general  simultaneous  assault. 
From  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  by  the  Borgo,  St.  Mar- 
garet's, Burmola,  the  bastion  of  Castile,  down  to  St. 
Michael's  Fort,  at  the  extremity  of  Sanglea,  along  the 
whole  circuit  of  the  walls,  every  practicable  breach  was 
attempted  by  the  Moslem.  Many  an  act  of  daring 
signalized  that  memorable  day.  One  is  worthy  of  par- 
ticular mention:  a  Turkish  chieftain,  named  Chedar, 
a  Sangiac  in  Africa,  in  his  richest  dress,  adorned  with 
glittering  jewels,  advanced  with  his  men  to  the  breach 
of  the  bastion  of  Castile,  and  insisted  on  his  standard- 
bearer  holding  aloft  his  ensign  during  the  attack,  as 
if  in  defiance  of  the  enemy.  Soldier  after  soldier, 
entrusted  with  this  dangerous  but  honorable  office,  was 
cut  down  ;  when  his  last  man  was  slain,  Chedar,  taking 
his  standard  in  his  own  left  hand,  and  his  scimiter  in 
his  right  hand,  rushed  upon. his  foes,  and  "foremost 


196  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

fighting  fell."  But  every  effort  of  valor,  or  of  fool- 
hardiness,  was  in  vain.  The  defenders  of  the  ramparts, 
strong  in  the  conviction  that  in  victory  was  their  only 
safety,  hesitated  not,  at  the  cost  of  their  lives,  to  resist 
their  assailants.  In  no  oue  place  on  that  day  of  trial 
did  the  marines  of  Piali  at  the  Borgo,  or  the  Algerines 
of  Hassein  at  the  Castile  bastion,  or  the  Janizzaries 
of  Mustapha  at  Fort  St.  Michael  prevail,  until  at  last 
once  more  the  Ottoman  trumpets  sounded  a  retreat, 
and  the  Turkish  battalions  returned  to  their  entrench- 
ments baffled,  beaten,  snd  discomfited;  in  fact,  the 
issue  of  this  day's  struggle  was  favorable  to  the  de- 
fenders, for  in  a  sortie  on  the  retreating  foe  a  redoubt 
was  captured  from  the  Turks,  and  was  permanently 
secured  for  the  better  protection  of  the  besieged. 

The  failure  of  this  second  great  attempt  at  a  general 
assault  proved  to  be  the  beginning  of  the  end.  The 
struggle  had  been  now  protracted  through  more  than 
three  months.  Turks  and  Europeans  were  equally 
exhausted.  The  gallant  Sea-Kings,  wearied  and  worn, 
with  skeleton  frames,  shrunken  visage,  unkempt  locks, 
unwashed  faces,  and  maimed  limbs,  with  their  walls 
mined,  their  forts  scarcely  manned,  their  resources 
crippled,  were  seriously  discussing  the  necessity  of  re- 
linquishing the  fortifications  on  the  Sanglea  promontory, 
and  of  concentrating  their  efforts  and  their  remaining 
soldiers  in  the  defence  of  the  Borgo,  and  the  stronger 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  197 

citadel  of  St.  Angelo.  Nothing  but  the  brave  heart, 
honest  eloquence,  and  personal  authority  of  Valette 
prevented  so  disastrous  and  unworthy  a  conclusion  to 
such  a  gallant  and  honorable  defence. 

The  besiegers,  in  their  turn,  were  in  an  equally  desper- 
ate condition.  Finding  that  they  could  not  get  posses- 
sioR~of  the  fortress  by  night  or  by  day,  by  open  assault 
or  secret  attacks,  by  covert  sap  or  dauntless  escalade ; 
fearing  too  that  their  ammunitions  and  provisions  were 
alike  deficient,  yet  not  willing  to  return  to  their  impe- 
rial master  without  some  spoils  or  retinue  of  slaves  to 
testify  their  partial  triumph,  Mustapha  and  Piali  re- 
solved to  watch  the  fortress  while  they  attacked  Nota- 
bile,* and  carry  back  to  Solyman  a  report  of  the  cap 
ture  of  the  capital  of  the  island.  Notabile  lay  within 
six  miles  of  their  entrenchments,  and  could  not  fail, 
they  thought,  to  become  an  easy  prize  to  their  yet 
numerous  and  well-appointed  army. 

The  Chevalier  Le  Masquita,  the  Governor  of  Nota 
bile,  was  a  gallant  and  trustworthy  soldier,  who  well 

*  Notabile,  now  more  commonly  called  Citta  Vecchia,  was  for  many  cen- 
turies the  only  town  in  Malta.  It  has  borne  in  the  lapse  of  ages  several 
different  names.  First  it  was  called  Melita,  the  same  name  as  the  island. 
Then  it  was  designated  by  the  Saracens  Medina,  or  the  Great  City.  Next  it 
received  the  name  of  Notabile,  from  Alphonso  the  Magnanimous,  King  of 
Spain,  who  in  a  State  paper,  A.  D.  1423,  spoke  of  Malta  as  "  the  most  precious 
jewel  in  the  crown."  Lastly,  on  the  completion  of  Valetta,  the  islanders 
called  Notabile,  by  way  of  distinction,  the  Old  City,  or  Citta  Vecchia.— 
Townsend's  English,  Guide  to  Churches  of  Malta,  p  41. 


198  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

knew  his  duty.  He  had  already  proved  his  energy  and 
spirit  on  his  well-timed  march  upon  the  deserted  camp 
of  the  Ottomans,  and  now  he  was  not  to  be  persuaded 
into  betraying  his  post,  or  yielding  his  town  without  a 
struggle  into  the  hand  of  foes  whom  his  brethren  at 
St.  Elmo  and  the  Borgo  had  resisted  so  successfully 
and  so  long.  Although  really  conscious  of  his  own 
weakness  and  inability  to  maintain  a  siege,  as  his  gar- 
rison had  been  mostly  withdrawn  to  supply  the  places 
of  the  slain  heroes  of  St.  Elmo,  yet,  on  the  approach 
of  the  Ottomans,  he  assumed  a  bold  front,  and  showed 
no  sign  of  fear  or  weakness.  He  returned  a  defiant 
answer  to  Mustapha's  summons  to  surrender.  Dressing 
up  the  townsmen  and  women  as  soldiers,  and  placing 
them  on  every  bastion,  ravelin,  and  rampart,  he  fired 
his  cannon  from  all  his  batteries,  so  that,  on  Mustapha 
consulting  his  engineers,  they  declared  there  could  be 
no  immediate  hope  of  succeeding  by  escalade  or  assault 
against  a  town  so  well  fortified  and  defended.  Musta- 
pha gave  up  his  intention  in  despair,  and  returned  to 
his  camp  dispirited  and  deceived. 

He  had  not,  however,  much  time  to  brood  over  his 
misfortunes.  The  long-expected  succors  from  Europe 
were  at  hand.  On  Thursday,  the  sixth  of  September, 
a  flotilla  from  Sicily  sailed  into  Melliha  Bay  laden  with 
troops.  As  soon  as  authentic  knowledge  of  this  fact 
reached  the  Turkish  camp,  a  general  panic  ensued. 


VALOR  AND  VICTORY.  199 

The  siege  guns  were  left  in  the  batteries.  The  galleys 
brought  into  the  Great  Harbor  at  so  much  cost  of 
human  labor  were  relinquished,  and,  amidst  a  general 
consternation,  soldier  and  general,  sutler  and  sailor, 
slave  and  chieftain,  vied  with  each  other  who  should  be 
the  foremost  to  gain  the  ships  yet  left  either  on  the 
open^sea,  or  in  the  Marsa  Muscetto  Harbor.  These 
tidings  of  deliverance  had  not  yet  reached  the  defend- 
ers of  the  fortress,  and  great  was  their  surprise  at  sun- 
rise on  Friday,  September  7th,  to  find  an  unusual 
silence  everywhere  prevailing.  No  cries  of  the  Turks 
nor  echoes  of  the  cannon  saluted  their  ears.  What  did 
it  mean  ?  The  trumpets  of  the  Janizzaries  clamorously 
summoning  the  galleys,  the  battalions  hastening  in 
disorder  to  the  sea-shore,  quickly  revealed  the  truth. 
The  foes  who  had  so  long  harassed  them  like  hungry 
wolves  thirsting  for  their  blood,  and  who  were  on  sev- 
eral occasions  on  the  very  verge  of  attaining  their 
desires,  were  now  leaving  their  walls  in  ignominy  and 
defeat.  The  hour  of  their  deliverance  had  arrived, 

"  And,  far  and  wide  as  eye  can  reach, 
The  turbaned  cohorts  throng  the  beach."  • 

Valette,  in  his  righteous  rejoicings,  did  not  forget  his 

duty  as  a  soldier.     He  sent  forth   his  men-at-arms  to 

level  the  entrenchments  and  to  destroy  the  siege-works 

of  the  Turks.     Then  women  and  little  children,  priests, 

*  Byron,  Siege  of  Corinth. 


200  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KENGS. 

and  populace,  hastened  in  their  glad  freedom  from 
restraint  to  assist  in  a  work  so  congenial  to  their  feel- 
ings. The  long  labors  of  weeks  were  in  a  few  hours 
frustrated  and  demolished. 

,  Such  was  the  termination  of  this  great  contest, 
famous  alike  in  its  duration  and  in  its  results.  The 
successful  exertions  of  Valette  and  his  brave  compan- 
ions marked  the  turn  in  the  ever  since  receding  tide  of 
Mohammedan  conquest.  The  defenders  of  Malta  in 
this  crisis  were  the  protectors  of  Christendom. 

Sorrow  and  joy,  tears  and  laughter,  are  fountains 
of  emotion  diverse  in  character,  yet  very  close  beside 
each  other  in  the  human  heart.  How  deep  must  have 
been  the  joy,  how  pure  the  thanksgivings,  which  arose 
within  the  heart  of  Valette  as,  yet  pale,  wan,  and 
wearied,  he  went  up  amidst  the  congratulations  of  his 
brave  soldiers,  and  the  grateful  acclamations  of  his 
people,  to  return  thanks  in  the  Church  of  San  Lorenzo, 
the  Cathedral  of  the  Borgo,  for  his  great  deliverance ! 
How  severe  must  have  been  the  grief,  and  bitter  the 
mortification,  of  his  foes,  as,  before  their  galleys  had 
left  the  shores  of  Malta,  they  saw  again  elevated  in  all 
its  ancient  pride,  upon  the  fortress  of  St.  Elmo,  the 
standard  of  the  White  Cross,  the  flag  of  the  Order  they 
detested,  the  symbol  of  the  Christian  Faith,  the  token 
of  the  victory  of  the  "Sea-Kings  of .  the  Mediterra- 
nean "  I 


CHAPTER  X. 

MERIDIAN  GLOEY. 

»*"""' 

"  Pride  in  their  port,  defiance  in  their  eye, 
1  see  the  lords  of  human  kind  pass  by." 

GOLDSMITH'S  Traveller. 

THE  Sea-Kings,  after  this  baptism  of  fire,  were  left 
in  peaceful  possession  of  their  island  home.  The  noble 
hero  of  the  siege  and  his  brave  companions  transferred 
their  residence  from  the  battered  walls  of  the  Borgo 
and  Sanglea  to  the  promontory  of  Mount  Sceberras, 
where  they  built  a  noble  city,  adorned  with  palaces, 
auberges,  and  hotels,  and  strengthened  with  massive 
ramparts,  deep  and  broad  trenches,  and  strong  fortifica- 
tions, and  named  it  Valetta.  The  fortunes  of  the 
Order  from  this  period  grew  brighter  and  brighter. 
The  Grand  Master  of  the  Hospitallers  occupied  a  proud 
position  among  the  potentates  of  Europe.  As  in  Eng- 
land the  Archbishopric  of  Canterbury,  with  its  rank 
next  to  the  blood-royal,  and  with  its  princely  income, 
is  a  prize  said  to  be  within  the  reach  of  the  son  of  every 
peasant  in  the  land,  so  the  Grand  Mastership  of  the 
Order  of  St.  John  appealed  to  the  aspirations  of  the 


202  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

chivalry  of  Christendom,  in  placing  within  the  sight  of 
every  individual  member  of  its  community  the  possible 
possession  of  a  throne.  The  chiefs  of  the  Sea-Kings 
assumed  on  their  election  all  the  distinctions  and  pre- 
rogatives of  sovereign  princes.  They  had  a  mint,  fleets, 
and  soldiers;  ambassador  representatives  at  the  courts 
of  Europe,  guards  of  honor,  high  officers  of  their  house- 
hold, salutes,  carpets  to  walk  on  for  state  occasions, 
letters  addressed  in  royal  style,  and  the  observance 
towards  them  of  all  the  august  ceremonies  accorded  to 
royal  personages. 

The  navy  during  this  period,  as  in  their  earlier  his- 
tory, was  the  chief  source  of  their  glory.  It  won  the 
great  naval  battle  of  Lepanto,  October  7th,  1571; 
captured  the  town  of  Patras,  A.  D.  1601 ;  fought  with 
and  defeated,  on  several  occasions  during  the  seven- 
teenth century,  large  Turkish  armaments  off  the  coast 
of  Greece,  Barbary,  Candia,  and  other  places  in  the 
Mediterranean.  These  famous  sea-captains  of  Malta 
attained  a  greater  reputation  than  at  any  preceding 
time,  and  rendered  valuable  assistance  to  the  commerce 
and  general  interests  of  all  European  countries.  The 
English  sovereigns,  Charles  II.,  James  II.,  and  Queen 
Anne,  owned,  in  autograph  letters  yet  extant,  their 
acknowledgments  to  the  Sea-Kings  for  their  efforts 
to  liberate  from  hostile  incursions  the  waters  of  their 
great  inland  ocean.  This  chapter  will  be  devoted 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  203 

to  the  narrative  of  some  of  the  exploits  of  these  great 
naval  captains  during  this  era  of  their  meridian  glory. 
The  first  of  whom  I  shall  speak  will  be  a  young  and 
illustrious  Sea-King,  Jean  Baptist  Spinola.  His  career 
commenced  in  disaster  and  misfortune,  but  ended 
with  reputation  and  honor.  Appointed  to  the  chief 
comntalid  of  the  squadron  of  Malta,  in  the  early  spring 
of  A.  D.  1700,  his  first  voyage  was  remarkable  for  the 
loss  of  his  flag-ship  in  a  contest  with  a  Tripoline  cruiser 
considerably  larger  than  his  own  vessel.  He  sailed 
from  the  Grand  Harbor,  Valetta,  on  Thursday,  the  15th 
day  of  February. 

"  The  crew  with  many  shouts  their  anchors  weigh, 
Then  ply  their  oars,  and  brush  the  buxom  sea."  * 

On  the  next  morning  he  found  himself  off  Cape  Pas- 
eero,  in  Sicily,  with  a  heavy  sea  in  the  channel,  and  a 
freshening  wind.  Shortly  after  daybreak  he  sighted  a 
ship  about  two  leagues  S.  E.  The  stranger  soon  de- 
scried the  Malta  galleys,  and,  putting  out  more  canvas, 
made  off  to  the  eastward,  showing  Tripoline  colors. 
Spinola  immediately  signalled  for  a  general  chase,  and 
his  vessels  pursued  the  enemy  with  a  press  of  sail,  and 
with  the  utmost  exertions  of  the  rowers.  The  wind 
increased  to  a  gale,  but  the  young  and  sanguine  leader 
refused  to  reduce  his  canvas,  and  met  with  his  first 
disaster  in  the  splitting  of  his  main-sail.  The  damage 
•Dryden, 


204  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

was  quickly  repaired  by  a  new  and  smaller  sail,  and 
his  consort  vessels  reduced  their  sails  to  keep  company 
with  the  flag-ship.  lu  about  an  hour  after  this  accident 
the  "Capitana"  came  abreast  within  musket-shot  of 
her  opponent,  who  instantly  saluted  her  with  a  fusillade 
of  musketry.  The  "  Capitana  "  replied  with  a  similar 
fire,  for,  as  it  happened,  neither  of  the  vessels  could 
use  their  larger  guns, —  the  Tripoline  through  her  decks 
being  overcrowded  with  merchandise,  the  flag-ship 
through  having  no  cannon  at  her  sides.  The  "  Capita- 
na," being  much  lighter  than  her  antagonist,  was 
driven  by  the  wind  far  ahead  to  the  leeward,  and  was 
compelled  to  make  a  long  tack  to  recover  the  weather- 
gage.  Having  made  his  tack,  Spinola  signalled  to 
his  consort  to  follow  his  example,  and  to  prepare  to 
grapple  and  board  as  soon  as  he  should  set  them  the 
example.  The  galleys  bore  well  down  on  the  Tripo- 
line, the  flag-ship  leading;  but  as  she  again  approached, 
the  Corsair  opened  for  the  second  time  a  well-sustained 
musketry  fire,  by  which  the  Admiral's  brother,  Domin- 
ic Spinola,  several  Knights,  and  many  rowers  were 
wounded.  The  flag-ship,  in  spite  of  the  havoc  caused 
by  this  discharge,  held  on  her  course,  with  the  design 
of  steering  so  as  to  get  beside  her  foe.  But  just  as  she 
was  about  to  accomplish  this  bold  manoBuvre,  a  huge 
sea  broke  and  caused  her  to  swerve,  so  that  the  Tripo- 
line, borne  along  under  courses  and  topsail,  struck  her 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  205 

with  great  force,  and  fairly  staved  in  her  bow,  so  that 
she  instantly  foundered.  Her  consort  vessels  hastened 
to  her  aid  ;  and  their  crews  made  every  effort  to  rescue 
their  companions,  but  so  high  was  the  sea,  and  so  rapid 
the  sinking  of  the  ship,  that  very  few  escaped.  Spi- 
nola  himself  was  among  the  number.  Fully  dressed 
in  his  knightly  cuirass  and  armor  he  leapt  into  the  sea, 
and  with  difficulty  reached  his  consort  galley,  the 
44  St.  Paolo."  The  Tripoline  crusier  made  off  in  the 
confusion,  and,  with  every  sail  set  to  the  wind,  escaped. 
The  most  intense  grief  afflicted  the  Sea-Kings  on 
this  unusual  event  —  the  loss  of  their  flag-ship  at  sea; 
Raymond  de  Perellos,  however,  the  Grand  Master  at 
this  crisis,  would  not  allow  Spinola  to  be  blamed  or 
called  in  question.  He  manfully  declared  that  it  was 
his  misfortune  more  than  his  fault  —  that  he  had  nobly 
done  his  duty,  without  rashness  and  without  cowardice 
—  and  reappointed  him  to  his  supreme  command  of  the 
squadron.  Spinola  a  second  time  left  Valetta,  in  the 
month  of  May,  with  a  fleet  of  six  vessels,  and  though 
animated  with  the  keenest  desire  to  repair  his  late  mis- 
fortune and  to  vindicate  his  fame,  was  again  doomed 
to  encounter  only  danger  and  calamity.  His  galleys 
were  shaken  and  dispersed  by  a  violent  tempest,  and 
he  was  compelled  to  conduct  them  home  to  careen  and 
to  refit.  On  this  second  trouble  he  was  looked  upon 
by  many  as  fated  not  to  succeed;  but  still  Perellos 


206  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KJNGS. 

stood  his  friend,  and  resolved  to  continue  him  in  his 
high  office  of  Admiral-in-Chief  for  the  remainder  of  the 
cruising  season,  and  so  afford  him  a  third  chance  of 
retrieving  his  destiny. 

Spinola  did  not  himself  despair  of  success,  and  most 
ardently  desired  an  opportunity  of  meeting  once  more 
an  enemy  on  the  seas.  In  the  month  of  September  a 
rumor  reached  him  of  a  large  vessel  of  war  being  em- 
ployed in  conveying  a  rich  cargo  of  merchandise  from 
Alexandria  to  Tripoli,  and  he  determined  to  leave  the 
harbor  and  to  keep  a  strict  look-out  in  the  course  prob- 
ably to  be  taken  by  this  ship.  Early  in  the  morning  of 
Monday,  October  7th,  a  large  square-rigged  vessel  was 
reported  some  seven  leagues  off,  E.  N.  E.  The  signal 
for  chase  was  immediately  given,  but  although  every 
exertion  was  made,  by  spreading  every  stitch  of  canvas, 
and  by  plying  each  oar  with  might  and  main,  the  ship 
was  not  overhauled  till  past  three  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, and  then  by  only  three  galleys,  the  rest  being 
still  far  astern.  Spinola  commenced  the  combat  with 
his  own  bow  guns  as  he  came  within  the  requisite  dis- 
tance, to  which  his  adversary  replied  with  the  guns  in 
her  stern  ;  but  quickly  coming  up  breast  to  breast  with 
his  opponent,  he  let  fly  a  broadside  from  his  flag-ship, 
to  which  a  like  reply  was  made  with  much  spirit  and 
confidence.  This  mutual  interchange  of  cannonades 
enabled  Spinola's  two  foremost  galleys  to  get  also 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  207 

abreast  on  the  other  side  of  his  huge  antagonist,  and 
the  Commander-in-Chief,  impatient  of  achieving  a  vic- 
tory, and  fearful  of  his  foe's  escape  in  the  approaching 
gloom  of  evening,  made  signals  to  his  consorts  of  his 
intention  to  attempt  to  board  the  enemy,  and  of  his 
desire  for  their  co-operatoin.  The  three  galleys  were 
at  once  rowed  simultaneously  to  the  attack,  the  flag- 
ship being  a  little  in  advance,  when  just  as  the  flag- 
galley,  propelled  by  the  full  force  of  her  oars,  was  on 
the  point  of  striking  with  her  prow,  the  Algerine  pilot 
shifted  his  helm  so  opportunely  that  Spinola's  vessel 
missed  her  stroke,  and  shot  by  under  her  adversary's 
stern  to  leeward.  The  flag-ship  thus  became  exposed 
to  the  Alexandrine's  starboard  broadside  ;  and  if  the 
guns  had  not  been  pointed  too  high,  then  had  the 
Admiral-in-Chief  paid  with  his  life  and  with  the  de- 
struction of  his  ship  the  penalty  of  his  boldness.  In 
the  meanwhile  the  next  Maltese  galley  placed  herself 
alongside  the  enemy,  in  the  exact  spot  where  her 
consort  was  to  have  been  located,  and  succeeded  in 
grappling  and  throwing  some  of  her  crew  into  the  ship. 
Spinola  quickly  returned  to  the  attack,  and  fastened 
his  vessel  to  the  stern  of  his  opponent,  and  soon  suc- 
ceeded, in  his  turn,  in  boarding  her. 

At  this  moment  the  three  Maltese  were  thus  placed : 
the  flag-ship  was  grappled  to  her  adversary's  stern  ;  her 
next  consort  had  lain  herself  alongside  on  the  larboard 


208  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

quarter,  at  the  third  port-hole  from  the  stern ;  ami  on 
the  same  side,  further  forward,  the  third  galley  had 
also  grappled  her  antagonist.  The  crew  of  the  Alge- 
rine  having  been  driven,  after  a  stout  resistance,  from 
the  lower  decks,  crowded  upon  the  forecastle,  resolved 
to  perish  rather  than  surrender.  Chevalier  de  Millard, 
Lieutenant  of  the  flag-ship,  rallied  a  band  of  Turkopo- 
liers  and  led  them  to  the  attack.  A  desperate  encoun- 
ter ensued.  The  Mohammedans,  in  frantic  excitement, 
fought  with  the  recklessness  of  madmen ;  but  at  last 
the  cool,  determined  valor  of  the  Sea-Kings  prevailed, 
and  the  Algerines  gave  tokens  of  submission.  A  small 
band  of  desperadoes  made  good  their  retreat  to  the 
powder-magazine,  and,  with  lighted  matches  in  their 
hands,  threatened  to  blow  up  the  vessel  unless  the 
Admiral,  whom  they  addressed  as  the  Capitaine  Pacha, 
would  come  in  person  and  promise  them  life  and  liberty. 
Spinola  complied  with  their  demand,  and  came  forward 
in  person  to  treat  with  them.  When,  however,  they 
saw  so  young  and  beardless  a  man,  they  could  scarcely 
be  persuaded  that  he  was  the  Capitaine  Pacha,  and  sus- 
pected that  some  trick  was  being  practised  on  them, 
At  last,  being  convinced  of  the  truth,  these  desperadoes 
came  out  of  the  hold  and  presented  their  lighted 
matches  to  the  Admiral,  who  at  once  cast  them  into 
1**e  sea. 

Spinola,  however,  did  not  terminate  his  danger  on 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  209 

this  occasion  with  this  gallant  capture  of  his  prize. 
**  If,"  he  writes  in  his  report  of  his  victory,  presented 
to  Perellos,  "I  had  to  exert  myself  to  save  the  ship 
from  fire,  I  had  to  work  equally  hard  to  prevent  her 
being  swallowed  up  by  the  greedy  sea ;  for  I  was  some 
time  in  doubt  whether  we  should  be  able  to  secure  her 
from  foundering.  Her  lower-deck  ports  had  been  care- 
lessly left  open,  though  there  'was  a  heavy  sea  running, 
consequently  the  water  was  rushing  in  on  her  lower 
deck.  As  those  whose  duty  it  should  have  been  to 
assist  me  in  remedying  this  evil  were  only  intent  on 
looking  out  for  booty  for  themselves,  and  as  in  a 
moment  of  general  confusion  it  is  always  difficult  to  get 
people  to  act  together,  I  was  placed  in  a  situation  of 
most  anxious  embarrassment.  At  length,  with  the 
zealous  assistance  of  the  Commander  Vimercati,  I  col- 
lected a  few  good  hands,  and  we  closed  the  port-lids, 
making  all  safe." 

The  night  was  far  spent  before  the  Admiral  left  his 
prize  to  return  to  his  own  galley.  His  first  act  on 
reaching  his  own  deck  was  to  kneel  down  and  return 
thanks  to  God  for  the  victory  he  had  gained,  and  next, 
to  adopt  measures  for  the  care  of  the  wounded,  the 
disposal  of  the  dead,  and  for  the  safe  convoy  of  the 
captured  ship  to  Malta.  The  prize  thus  so  gallantly 
won  proved  to  be  the  Alexandrine  sloop  the  "  Bening- 
hami,"  pierced  for  eighty  guns,  but  having  only  sixty- 
14 


210  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

six  mounted,  and.  sixteen  swivel  guns,  with  a  crew  of 
155  Turks.  She  was  laden  with  wheat,  barley,  oil,  and 
other  provisions,  and  had  on  board  several  merchants 
bound  from  Alexandria  to  Tripoli.  Her  cargo  was 
sold  at  Malta  for  20,238  scudi.  Of  her  crew  only  120 
were  found  alive,  of  whom  thirty-three  were  wounded. 
The  loss  on  board  the  galleys  was  very  considerable. 
Five  Caravanserists  were  killed  and  five  wounded. 
Nine  of  the  crew  were  killed  and  fifty-seven  wounded  ; 
and  of  the  rowing-crews  three  were  killed  and  twenty- 
two  wounded.  Vimercati,  who  had  already  done  such 
good  service,  was  intrusted  with  the  command  of  the 
prize;  and  on  the  llth  October  the  "  Beninghami," 
escorted  by  her  conquerors,  entered  with  safety  the 
Great  Harbor  of  Valetta.  Thus  did  the  gallant  Spi- 
nola  retrieve  his  character,  and  he,  who  on  his  depart- 
ure had  been  regarded  as  fore-doomed  to  misfortune, 
was  now  hailed  as  a  successful  commander,  to  whom, 
after  the  capture  of  so  large  a  vessel  as  the  "  Bening- 
hami," no  achievement  would  be  too  great.  On  Tues- 
day, October  15th,  the  Grand  Master  and  his  Council 
attended  in  state  the  Con-Cathedral  of  St.  John,  when 
a  «'  Te  Deum  "  was  sung  for  the  victory ;  and  a  picture, 
representing  the  action  at  sea,  was  ordered  to  be  paint- 
ed on  the  wall  in  the  gallery  of  the  palace,  where  it  is 
to  be  seen  to  this  day. 

Raymond   de   Perellos,  who   at   this   time   ruled  in 


MERIDIAN  GLOEY.  211 

Malta,  was  a  great  naval  reformer.  Convinced  by  the 
untoward  loss  of  the  "  Capitana,"  and  by  the  generally 
dilapidated  condition  of  the  galleys,  that  the  time  was 
come  when  his  fleet  should  be  entirely  reconstructed, 
he  undertook  the  task  with  all  the  energy  ot  his  indi- 
vidual character,  and  with  all  the  weight  of  his  official 
authority.  He  took  active  steps  to  provide  the  neces- 
sary funds,  and  ordered  four  large  ships  of  war  for 
strengthening  and  refurnishing  his  navy.  Two  of  these, 
named  the  **  St.  Catherine  "  and  the  "  St.  Joseph,"  he 
intrusted  to  his  own  shipwrights  in  the  dockyards  of 
Valetta,  and  directed  that  they  be  pierced  for  fifty-six 
and  forty-six  guns  respectively,  while  he  defrayed  from 
his  own  purse  all  the  charges  of  the  smaller  vessel.  He 
obtained  the  permission  of  Louis  XIV.  to  have  two 
ships,  named  the  "St.  John"  and  the  "St.  James," 
constructed  in  the  royal  arsenals  at  Toulon,  and  pierced 
to  carry  sixty  guns  each,  from  the  designs  and  under 
the  personal  superintendence  of  the  Sieur  Columbo, 
naval  architect  to  the  king.  The  cost  of  each  of  these 
two  vessels  was  estimated  at  150,000  scudi,  or  about 
£12,500.  The  "St.  Joseph"  was  the  first  finished  of 
these  four  new  ships  in  the  month  of  December,  A.  D. 
1702.  On  its  being  launched,  it  presented  a  curious 
instance  of  mal-administration ;  for  though  built  to 
carry  forty-six  guns,  only  eighteen  of  that  number  were 
available,  the  rest  being  placed  too  near  the  water  to 


212  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

be  used  except  in  the  calmest  sea.  The  two  Toulon 
ships  were  finished  in  May,  A.  D.  1704,  when  the  "  St. 
Joseph,"  escorted  by  some  galleys,  sailed  for  that  arse- 
nal, and  brought  them  in  safety  to  Valetta.  A  twelve- 
month was  consumed  in  furnishing  the  new  ships  with 
their  effective  complement  of  provision  and  of  guns,  so 
that  the  spring  of  A.  D.  1705  had  arrived  before  the 
whole  new  squadron  was  ready  for  sea.  Perellos  en- 
trusted the  supreme  command  to  a  French  Knight,  a 
famous  Admiral  in  Louis  XIV.'s  navy,  the  Chevalier 
Francis  Anthony  de  Castel  St.  Pierre,  and  gave  him 
for  his  lieutenants  the  Chevalier  Francis  de  Cintray, 
Captain  of  the  "  St.  John  ;  "  Commander  De  Mareuile, 
Capain  of  the  "  St.  James ; "  Commander  De  Lanyon, 
Captain  of  the  "  St.  Catherine."  The  Grand  Master, 
resolved  to  do  the  utmost  honor  to  so  memorable  an 
occasion,  personally  invested  the  new  Admiral  with  his 
command.  On  the  day  appointed  his  Eminence  pro- 
ceeded, with  a  suite  of  Grand  Crosses,  Commanders, 
and  Knights,  to  the  Marina,  opposite  to  which  the 
four  new  ships  were  anchored,  dressed  with  all  their 
ensigns,  flags,  pendants,  and  quarter-cloths.  The  Com- 
raander-in-Chief  had  laid  down  a  stage  or  bridge,  richly 
carpeted,  adorned  with  banners  and  with  a  triumphal 
arch. 

At  the  moment  the  Grand  Master  put  his  foot  on 
deck  the  whole  squadron  saluted  with  salvos  of  artillery 


Ships.  — Tage  213. 


MERIDIAN   GLORY.  213 

and  of  musketry.  His  Excellency  was  then  introduced 
into  the  state  cabin  under  the  poop,  which  was  hung 
with  crimson  damask.  In  the  centre  was  placed  his 
magisterial  chair  of  state,  on  a  magnificent  carpet,  with 
simple  chairs  on  each  side  for  the  Grand  Crosses.  His 
Excellency  courteously  declined  to  take  his  seat,  and 
remained  standing  before  the  chair  of  state,  having  the 
Admiral-elect  on  his  left,  and  the  Grand  Crosses  on  his 
right  hand,  arranged  according  to  their  priority  of  rank. 
The  officers  of  the  squadron  were  then  introduced,  and 
the  Grand  Master  Perellos  thus  addressed  them  :  *'  We 
have  elected  an  illustrious  Knight,  a  famous  sea-captain 
under  our  cousin  the  King  of  France,  to  be  the  chief 
commander  of  our  fleet,  and  we  desire  you  to  obey  him 
as  if  he  were  ourself  in  person."  This  done,  all  the 
officers,  on  bended  knee,  kissed  his  Excellency's  hand. 
At  the  conclusion  of  this  ceremony,  refreshments  of 
various  kinds  were  handed  round  by  the  Caravanserists* 

*  The  expeditions  against  the  Turks  were  called  ' '  caravans. ' '  Every  Knight 
entitled  to  command  a  vessel  was  compelled  to  servo  in  four  caravans,  and 
those  who  had  so  served  were  called  "Caravanserists."  One  year's  continu- 
ous service  on  ship-board  counted  for  two  caravans. 

This  may  be  a  suitable  opportunity  to  give  a  brief  account  of  the  ships  in 
ordinary  use  in  the  Mediterranean  at  this  time.  Each  naval  state  of  impor- 
tance had  one  large  ship  or  caracca,  which  was  the  flag-ship  of  the  state,  and 
reserved  for  the  passage  of  kings,  ambassadors,  or  persons  of  high  distinc- 
tion, and  used  on  special  occasions  for  warlike  purposes,  or  for  the  transit  of 
cargoes  of  special  value.  These  caraccas  had  three  fixed  masts,  and  were 
from  1G2  feet  in  length  above  the  deck,  to  133  feet  by  the  keel,  and  32  feet 


214  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

and  other  Knights,  after  which  the  Grand  Master  went 
all  over  the  vessels,  and  inspected  their  rowing-crews. 
These  rowing-crews  deserve  a  passing  notice.  They 
were  for  the  most  part  negroes,  or  men  originally  peas- 
ants, fishermen,  or  sailors,  taken  from  the  vessels  of  the 
Turks  in  their  numerous  naval  conflicts.  Sometimes 
merchants  or  traders  were  found  among  them,  though 
persons  in  this  condition  of  life  generally  ransomed 
themselves,  by  the  payment  of  money,  from  captivity. 
If  they  failed  to  do  so,  their  unhappy  fate  was  a  bond- 
age lasting  their  life.  These  rowing-crews,  when  on 
shore  during  the  winter,  were  lodged  in  the  two  slave 

wide.  They  had  thirty-two  or  more  banks  of  oars,  with  six  men  to  each  oar. 
They  carried  three  batteries  of  cannon,  the  lowest  of  which  were  thirty-six; 
middle,  twenty-four;  and  highest,  two-pounders.  The  complement,  includ- 
ing rowers,  mustered  1,000  men. 

The  ordinary  fighting-ship  by  which  the  naval  triumphs  of  the  Sea-Kings 
were  achieved  was  a  smaller  vessel — the  galley.  These  were  low-built  ves- 
sels, navigated  with  oars  and  sails.  They  were  from  120  to  130  feet  long,  15 
feet  broad,  and  9  to  10  feet  deep.  They  had  two  masts,  with  lateen  sails, 
which  might  be  elevated  or  lowered  at  pleasure.  They  carried  from  three  .to 
five  pieces  of  artillery,  one  of  which  was  a  large  bow-chaser.  They  had 
from  twenty-five  to  thirty  hanks  of  oars,  each  of  which  had  two  or  three 
rowers  chained  to  the  bench.  These  were  worked  by  slaves;  but,  failing 
these,  freemen  were  hired,  who  were  known  under  the  name  of  Buonavo^lia. 
The  crew  amounted  to  250  men,  over  and.  above  the  rowing -crew. 

There  were  also  in  frequent  use  another  kind  of  galley,  called  galiots,  and 
half-galleys,  light  and  swift,  with  seldom  more  than  fifteen  to  twenty  bunks 
of  oars,  used  chiefly  by  Barbary  Corsairs.  There  were  several  kinds  of  ves- 
sels in  common  use  on  the  Mediterranean  at  the  early  part  of  6ie  eighteenth 
century: — 


MERIDIAN  GLOKY.  215 

prisons,  one  in  the  Borgo  close  to  the  dockyard,  in  the 
Port  of  the  Galleys,  and  the  other  in  the  Strada  Chris- 
tophero,  Valetta. 

The  chief  prison  of  the  Borgo  consisted  of  a  series 
of  low  vaulted  chambers,  hewn  in  the  solid  rock,  with 
small  windows  for  the  admission  of  light,  protected 
wtyk-huge  iron  bars.  The  poor  sufferers  wandered  at 
their  will  through  these  chambers,  in  which,  in  retired 
corners,  were  small  chapels  or  mosques,  and  apartments 
devoted  to  the  use  of  the  sick.  The  prison  in  Valetta 
was  a  large  brick  building,  divided  into  small  rooms; 
and  while  the  slaves  in  the  Borgo  were  employed 
during  the  winter  in  working  by  gangs  in  the  dockyard, 

Tartanes:  a  craft  having  one  mast,  carrying  a  large  lateen  sail,  a  small 
mizzen  mast,  with  a  kind  of  ring-tail  slide,  and  a  bowsprit  with  jib  sails. 

Londra :  a  low  barge-like  craft,  with  oars  and  sails,  used  as  a  market-boat. 

Pink:  a  lateen-sailed  three-masted  craft,  with  a  high  and  very  narrow 
stern,  and  flat  deck. 

Xebec :  a  vessel  with  three  masts,  the  mainmast  inclined  forward ;  a  strong 
prow;  at  end  of  stern  a  raised  platform  with  narrow  floor,  and  convex  to 
throw  off  water,  with  a  platform  for  crew  to  work  the  guns,  generally  from 
fourteen  to  twenty-four  in  number. 

Speronara:  with  one  sail  well  forward,  undecked,  and  movable  mast,  and 
.tather  flat-bottomed. 

Felucca:  a  long,  light,  narrow  craft,  with  oars  and  sails,  two  lateen-rigged 
masts  bending  forward.  Formerly  their  rudders  could  be  used  at  either  stern 
or  bow,  as  both  ends  were  provided  with  the  necessary  googings. 

Brigantines:  not  like  English  and  American  brigs,  but  light  undecked 
vessels,  with  oars  and  sails.  They  carried  twenty-four  oars,  rowed  by  one 
man ;  much  used  by  Corsairs,  the  crew  acting  as  rowers,  and  keening  their 
arms  under  the  thwarts  ready  for  immediate  use. 


216  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

arsenals,  and  fortifications,  those  confined  in  Valetta 
were  more  specially  employed  in  making  blankets, 
woollen  cloths,  and  the  clothing  worn  by  themselves 
and  by  their  companions  in  misery.  Every  man  was 
obliged  to  wear  a  cap,  on  which  was  fixed  a  tin  plate 
bearing  a  number,  by  which  alone  he  was  known  and 
entered  on  the  list.  These  caps,  according  to  their 
color,  marked  the  character  of  the  wearer  —  gray, 
green,  or  red  distinguishing  the  idler,  deserter,  or  thief. 
The  cruelties  exercised  by  the  taskmasters  upon  these 
poor  victims  were  almost  beyond  belief.  Howard  the 
philanthropist  relates  that  he  saw  the  wounds  of  a 
slave,  which  had  begun  to  mortify,  relentlessly  rubbed 
with  bark,  in  spite  of  the  excruciating  cries  of  the  suf- 
ferer. On  another  occasion,  when  he  noticed  the  rings 
and  pulleys  fastened  in  the  wall  for  the  punishment  of 
the  slaves,  he  declares  that  a  jailer  told  him  that  he 
had  seen  drops  of  bloody  sweat  on  the  breasts  of  those 
submitted  to  the  torture.*  The  most  severe  service  of 
all  imposed  upon  the  slave  was  the  bench  of  the  galley, 
for  not  only  was  the  labor  the  hardest,  and  the  fare  the 
poorest,  but  there  was  also  the  frequent  peril  of  the 
combat,  and  almost  certain  death  if  the  vessel  were  to 
founder  while  they  were  fastened  by  their  ironed  ankles 
to  the  floor.  Some  few  of  the  more  favored  of  these 
poor  creatures  were  admitted  to  the  easier  yoke  of 
*  Howard's  Lazarettos  of  Europe,  p.  53. 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  217 

domestic  bondage,  and  waited  at  the  banquet,  and  lived 
in  the  households  of  their  masters.  ,  This  license, 
however,  proved  to  be  a  source  of  danger;  for  the 
slaves  were  so  numerous,  and  so  united  and  bound  to 
each  other,  that  on  more  than  one  occasion  they  had 
planned  a  revolt,  and  would  more  than  once,  except 
for  a.-fcimely  discovery  of  their  design,  have  perpetrated 
on  their  lords  a  dire  vengeance  and  effectual  extermi- 
nation. 

The  new  fleet,  reconstructed  at  so  much  cost,  and 
inaugurated  with  so  splendid  a  ceremonial,  gained  in  its 
first  yearly  cruise  but  few  and  barren  honors.  The 
only  prize  during  the  whole  summer  was  a  small  Tri- 
poline  galiot.  The  squadron  caught  sight  of  her  off 
Pantellaria,  on  Friday,  June  15th,  and  immediately 
gave  chas^.  The  sea  was  perfectly  still, —  one  of  those 
dead,  motionless  calms  frequent  in  the  Mediterranean, 
when  the  surface  of  the  water  seems  to  be  solid  as  a 
polished  mirror,  undisturbed  by  breath  of  air  or  ripple 
of  ocean.  There  was  no  hope  of  approaching  the  flying 
vessel,  except  by  superiority  in  rowing.  For  eleven 
long  hours,  without  rest  or  intermission,  did  the  rowing- 
crews,  throughout  the  heat  of  that  cloudless  midsum 
mer's  day,  toil  at  their  oars.  So  great  were  their 
exertions  that  several  slaves,  over-taxed  in  strength, 
expired  on  their  benches  under  the  lash  of  their  task* 
masters.  At  midnight  the  "  St.  Joseph  "  came  up  first 


218  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

with  the  fugitive,  which,  seeing  so  numerous  a  fleet, 
surrendered  without  resistance.  The  crew  only  con- 
sisted of  thirty-six  Turkish  sailors,  so  that  the  squadron 
reaped  from  their  conquest  little  either  of  profit  or  of 
reputation. 

The  proceedings  of  the  second  year  were  more  satis- 
factory. On  the  morning  of  Wednesday,  May  1st, 
A.  t>.  1706,  the  squadron  was  off  the  island  of  Staffenda, 
when  three  large  square-rigged  vessels  hove  in  sight. 
A  pursuit  was  at  once  ordered.  The  hostile  ships, 
when  first  seen,  were  heading  in  shore,  but  quickly 
tacked  out  to  seaward,  and  set  their  canvas  to  the  wind. 
The  chase  continued  throughout  the  whole  day  and  the 
following  night;  but  at  the  dawn  of  Thursday,  May 
2nd,  the  "St.  Joseph,"  the  fastest  sailer  in  the  fleet, 
having  considerably  outstripped  her  consorts,  found 
herself  within  gun-range  of  the  strangers.  As  soon  as 
the  light  permitted  she  hoisted  her  ensign.  In  answer 
to  this  the  pursued  ships  exhibited  English  colors, 
although  their  build,  sails,  and  general  appearance 
showed  plainly  that  they  had  not  unfurled  their  proper 
flag.  De  Cintray,  in  the  hope  of  inducing  his  foes  to 
fly  their  own  colors,  ran  up  the  large  standard  of  Malta 
at  his  mast's  head,  The  commanders  of  the  three  for- 
eign vessels  at  once,  in  reply  to  this  challenge,  hauled 
down  the  English,  and  ran  up  the  Turkish  flag,  and,  as 
if  in  proud  defiance,  or  in  the  scorn  of  hereditary  hate, 
fired  a  gun  from  every  ship. 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  219 

The  Maltese  Admiral,  having  discovered  for  certain 
the  presence  of  foemen,  would 'not  commence  the  com- 
bat against  so  greatly  superior  a  force  without  support. 
He  was  content  to  continue  the  pursuit  throughout  the 
whole  of  a  second  day.  The  sea  was  calm  as  a  lake, 
and  with  the  daybreak  the  wind  fell,  so  that  the  chase 
depended  entirely  on  the  rowers.  In  the  evening,  at 
sunset,  a  favorable  wind  again  sprang  up,  which 
brought  the  Maltese  squadron  so  well  forward  during 
the  night,  that,  as  the  morning  of  the  third  day  light- 
ened, De  Cintray  again  found  himself  to  be  within 
gunshot  of  the  enemy.  Without  futher  delay,  he  de- 
termined to  commence  the  action  by  firing  upon  the 
vessel  nearest  to  his  ship.  While  her  commander  cour- 
ageously accepted  the  challenge,  the  two  foremost  of 
the  hostile  fleet,  putting  on  all  the  canvas  they  could 
carry,  deserted  their  consort,  and  left  her  to  fight  alone. 
The  commander  and  crew  of  the  remaining  ship  fought 
most  gallantly,  for  when  their  masts  and  sails  had  been 
destroyed  by  the  guns  of  the  **  St.  Joseph  "  they  boldly 
plied  their  oars,  and  drove  with  all  their  force  against 
their  foe,  in  the  hope  of  sinking  or  of  boarding  her,  and 
of  yet  wresting  the  victory  from  their  conquerors  by 
the  greater  superiority  of  their  soldiers  in  numbers  and 
in  musketry.  This  brave  manoeuvre  was  attempted  in 
vain.  The  pilot  of  De  Cintray  was  enabled  to  frustrate 
the  movement  by  his  skill  in  steering.  The  contest 


220  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

was,  however,  still  persevered  in  by  the  Turks;  and 
the  combat  was  only  decided  by  the  coming  up,  at  the 
end  of  two  hours,  of  the  remaining  slower  vessels  of  the 
Maltese  fleet,  when  the  Turkish  commander,  seeing 
that  all  chance  of  a  successful  resistance  was  over, 
drew  down  his  ensign  in  token  of  surrender.  The 
prize  proved  to  be  the  "  Rose  of  Tunis,"  mounting  43 
guns,  with  a  crew  of  400  men,  of  whom  300  were 
trained  soldiers.  The  conflict  was  most  disastrous  to 
the  Turks,  who  numbered  70  killed  and  40  wounded, 
while  her  antagonist  had  only  one  killed  and  six 
wounded.  Fifteen  Christian  sailors  found  among  the 
rowers  were  at  once  released,  while  the  Turks  were  as- 
signed as  slaves.  The  squadron  after  this  victory  set 
sail  homewards,  and  entered  the  Great  Harbor  with 
their  prize  on  Tuesday,  May  7th,  amidst  the  acclama- 
tions of  the  inhabitants.  The  "  Rose  of  Tunis  "  was  so 
well  found  and  serviceable  a  vessel,  that  she  was  al- 
lotted a  store-ship  to  the  fleet,  under  the  new  name 
of  the  "  Santa  Croce."  The  commander,  De  Cintray, 
was  shortly  after  this  brave  exploit  sent  in  his  ship,  the 
*'  St.  Joseph,"  to  Civita  Vecchia,  to  attend  as  the  rep- 
resentative of  Perellos  at  the  court  of  Pope  Clement 
XI.  In  his  letters  to  the  Grand  Master  he  records  the 
following  interesting  circumstances  in  connection  with 
this  visit  to  Rome : — 

"  The  Chevalier  Rospiglioni  gave  a  musical  entertain' 


MERIDIAN  GLOKT.  221 

ment,  called  an  '  oratoria,'  to  all  the  principal  person- 
ages in  Rome,  the  splendor  of  which  can  hardly  be  im- 
agined, and  would  be  impossible  to  describe.  The 
orchestra,  placed  in  a  sort  of  amphitheatre  erected  for 
the  occasion,  was  composed  of  eighty  instruments,  in 
the  hands  of  the  best  professors  of  Rome,  under  the  di- 
rection" of  the  famous  violinist  Corelli,*  and  the  vocal- 
ists were  some  of  the  most  celebrated  in  Italy :  among 
whom  was  the  Musico  Quiquini,  so  renowned  for  the 
beauty  of  his  voice.  Exquisite  refreshments  added  to 
the  charms  of  the  evening.  It  would  have  been  scarce- 
ly possible  to  enjoy  an  equally  brilliant  fete  in  any 
other  city  of  the  world." 

This  brief  extract  from  De  Cin tray's  correspondence 
reveals  the  true  character  of  the  man.  He  was  not  a 
mere  rough  sailor,  familiar  with  the  fury  of  the  battle 
or  the  coarseness  of  the  deck ;  but  a  polished  knight, 
fitted  to  adorn,  and  able  to  appreciate  the  amenities 
and  refinements  of,  a  court. 

In  the  year  1709  A.  D.,  Perellos  and  his  Council 
made  some  important  changes  in  the  organization  of 
their  fleet.  The  four  largest  galleys,  named  the  "  Cap- 
itana,"  "St.  Louis,"  "St.  Mary,"  and  "Petrona," 
were  associated  with  the  four  ships  of  war  in  the  opera- 
tions of  their  summer  cruise.  The  combined  fleet  of 
eight  vessels,  while  coasting,  under  the  command  of 

*  Corelli  Arcangelo,  born  in  Italy,  1653.    He  died  at  Eome,  Jan.  18, 1713* 


222  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

Chevalier*  de  Fleuringy  as  Chief  Admiral,  along  the 
shores  of  Italy,  met,  on  Friday,  June  24th,  an  English 
merchant-ship,  the  master  of  which  reported  that  he 
had  spoken  on  the  preceding  day  with  the  flag-ship 
of  the  Algerine  navy,  in  company  with  a  tartane,  a 
smaller  vessel  of  war,  and  pointed  out  the  direction 
in  which  they  were  sailing.  De  Fleuringy  instantly  or- 
dered his  united  squadron  to  give  chase;  and  on 
the  morrow,  Saturday,  June  25th,  the  two  vessels  were 
discovered  with  their  sails  furled,  waiting  at  the  en- 
trance to  the  Adriatic  for  any  vessel  they  might  be 
strong  enough  to  attack.  The  wind  being  light,  De 
Fleuringy  ordered  the  four  galleys  to  tow  the  flag-ship 
"St.  John,"  which  happened  to  be  a  long  way  ahead 
of  her  consorts,  and  to  press  on  in  pursuit.  The  Tripo- 
line  cruisers,  when  they  found  themselves  in  danger  of 
an  attack  from  a  superior  force,  crowded  sail  and  en- 
couraged their  rowers,  and  made  every  effort  to  escape. 
The  attempt  was  useless.  At  the  end  of  four  hours 
"  St.  John  "  came  within  gun-range,  and  her  adversary, 
seeing  that  there  was  no  escape  from  the  conflict,  pre- 
pared for  action.  The  tartane  took  no  part  in  the 
fight,  but  lashed  herself  to  the  side  of  her  consort, 
not  exposed  to  the  fire  of  her  opponent.  The  "  St. 
John,"  being  kept  steady  and  in  a  good  position  by 
hawsers  attached  to  the  galleys,  two  of  which  held  her 
by  the  bow  and  two  by  the  stern,  let  fly  broadside 


MEBIDIAN  GLORY.  223 

after  broadside  in  long  succession  with  terrible  effect  on 
the  hull,  mast,  rigging,  and  sails  of  both  vessels;  until 
the  Admiral,  observing  that  the  Tripoline  ships  were 
becoming  unmanageable,  and  that  the  breeze  had  fresh- 
ened, signalled  to  the  galleys  to  cast  off  the  ship,  and 
then,  trimming  his  sails  to  the  wind,  speedily  laid  his 
vessel  closer  abreast  of  his  larger  adversary,  and  poured 
in  his  broadsides  at  a  shorter  distance. 

"  The  linstocks  touch,  the  ponderous  ball  expires; 

The  vig'rous  seaman  every  port-hole  plies, 
And  adds  his  heart  to  every  gun  he  fires."  * 

In  a  short  time  the  Tripoline  flag-ship  was  seen  to  be 
on  fire,  which  quickly  spread  to  the  tartane  lashed  to 
her  side,  and  both  vessels  were  quickly  wrapped  in 
flames.  The  crews  in  tumultuous  haste  leaped  from 
the  decks  into  the  sea.  The  "  St.  John "  at  once 
ceased  firing,  and  removed  to  a  safer  distance ;  while, 
at  a  signal  from  De  Fleuririgy,  every  galley  lowered  her 
boats  for  the  blessed  work  of  mercy  and  rescue.  The 
hands  which  a  moment  since  had  been  raised  in  hostile 
fury  against  foemen,  were  now  clasped  by  those  very 
opponents  in  closest  friendship  as  friends,  saviours,  and 
deliverers. 

"For  however  their  duty  bold  tara  may  delight  in, 

And  peril  defy,  as  a  bugbear,  a  flam ; 
Though  the  lion  may  feel  surly  pleasure  in  fighting, 
He'll  feel  more  by  compassion  when  turn'd  to  a  lamb."  t 
*  Dryden,  Annue  Mirabilie.  t  Dibdin. 


224  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

The  flag-ship  thus  vanquished  carried  56  guns,  and  a 
crew  of  500  men ;  while  the  tartane  mounted  10  can- 
non, with  a  crew  of  150  men.  Out  of  these  more  than 
400  were  saved  from  their  double  peril  of  fire  and 
water  by  the  exertions  of  their  conquerors. 

The  annual  cruise  of  the  Maltese  fleet  in  the  next 
year,  A.  D.  1710,  was  inaugurated  by  changes  in  the 
vessels  and  in  the  officers  in  command.  The  flag-ship, 
the  "  St.  Joseph,"  was  found  to  have  been  so  much  in- 
jured in  her  contest  with  the  Tripoline  flag-ship  that 
she  was  no  longer  fit  for  service.  Her  place  was 
supplied  by  the  "Santa  Croce,"  lately  the  "Rose  of 
Tunis,"  which  was  transferred  from  a  store-ship  to  the 
higher  honor  of  a  vessel  of  war,  and  being  armed  with 
40  guns  and  provided  with  a  crew  of  250  men,  became 
henceforth  a  permanent  addition  to  the  war  squadron. 
The  gallant  De  Cintray  was  appointed  to  the  command- 
in-chief,  and  the  brave  and  experienced  Adrian  de  Lan- 
yon  was  made  his  vice-admiral.  Never  did  the  navy  of 
the  Sea-Kings  achieve,  through  all  the  annals  of  its  his- 
tory, a  higher  reputation,  or  reach  a  higher  pinnacle  of 
glory,  than  during  the  leadership  of  these  two  illus- 
trious sea-captains,  De  Cintray  and  De  Lanyon.  They 
gained,  in  the  course  of  the  summer,  many  costly 
prizes;  but  the  chief  adventure  of  the  year  was  a 
prolonged  and  sanguinary  contest  conducted  against  a 
vastly  superior  force  by  three  vessels  of  the  squadron 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  225 

off  the  coast  of  Africa.  On  Thursday,  the  6th  of  June, 
six  ships,  sailing  under  Algerine  colors,  were  sighted  at 
daybreak  off  Cape  Bon.  The  Sea-King  Admirals,  un- 
dismayed at  their  inferiority  of  numbers,  immediately 
gave  chase.  The  spirit  of  the  two  antagonists  may  be 
described  in  the  famous  English  sea-song  — 

*•"""    "  "We  ne'er  see  our  foes  but  we  wish  them  to  stay; 
They  ne'er  see  us  but  they  wish  its  away; 
If  they  run,  why,  we  follow,  or  run  them  ashore, 
For  if  they  won't  fight  us,  we  cannot  do  more."  * 

The  Algerines,  recognizing  the  white  cross  at  the  mast- 
heads, scudded  away  before  the  wind  as  fast  as  they 
could,  and  directed  their  course  for  a  strong  and  friend- 
ly fort  on  the  island  of  Galatea.  After  a  run  of  four 
hours  they  were  compelled  to  tack,  that  they  might 
make  the  harbor.  This  manoauvre  brought  them  within 
the  range  of  the  guns  of  the  flag-ship,  the  "St.  James," 
when  De  Cintray  fired  on  them  with  his  upper-deck 
guns.  The  Algerines,  without  altering  their  course,  re- 
plied with  their  stern  guns,  but  failed  to  strike  the  Ad- 
miral's ship,  which  pressed  so  closely  upon  the  fugitives 
that  they  could  not  venture  on  a  second  tack  re- 
quired to  gain  the  port,  but  were  obliged  to  run  by  it. 
They  passed,  however,  so  near  the  fortress  protecting 
its  entrance,  that  five  guns  were  fired  at  De  Cintray's 
ship,  but  without  effect.  The  Admiral,  however, 

•  David  Garrick. 

15 


226  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

almost  immediately  experienced  a  worse  disaster.  In 
his  anxiety  to  overtake  the  runaways,  he  put  out  so 
much  canvas  that  his  mainmast  was  carried  away  and 
his  topmast  was  badly  sprung  by  the  wind.  This  mis- 
adventure gave  the  "  St.  Catherine,"  the  Vice-Admir- 
al's ship,  the  foremost  position  in  the  chase.  At  nine 
A.  M.  she  overhauled  the  hindermost  vessel  of  the  Al- 
gerines,  named  the  "  Cavallo  Bianco." 

"  She  bears  ^her  down  majestically  near, 
Speed  on  her  prow,  and  terror  in  her  tier."  * 

After  a  short  and-hot  encounter,  the  "St.  Catherine" 
shot  down  the  sling,  chain,  and  foretopsail  yards  of  her 
antagonist,  and  otherwise  did  much  damage  to  her 
rigging ;  and  having  thus  disabled  her  from  pursuit,  or 
from  further  present  mischief,  pushed  on  in  the  chase 
with  an  eager  desire  to  overtake  the  remaining  fugi- 
tives. At  noon,  about  eight  hours  from  the  commence- 
ment of-  the  chase,  the  "  St.  .Catherine  "  fairly  came 
abreast  of  the  enemy's  ships,  when  her  gallant  com- 
mander, heedless  of  the  number  of  his  foes,  steered  his 
ship  right  into  the  midst  of  them,  thus  placing  two 
on  his  starboard  and  three  on  his  port  side.  The  sea 
being  tolerably  smooth,  the  "  St.  Catherine "  ap- 
proached close  to  one  of  the  ships  named  the  "Beech- 
er,"  and  firing  a  well  sustained  simultaneous  broadside, 
brought  down  her  mizenraast  and  foretop  sails.  The 
*  Corsair. 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  22? 

Algerine  Admiral,  with  a  laudable  desire  to  help  his 
consort,  tried  to  place  his  ship  between  the  "  St.  Cath- 
erine" and  her  antagonist;  but  hardly  had  he  com- 
menced the  necessary  manoeuvre  before  De  Lanyon 
discovered  his  intention,  and  so  cleverly  luffed  his  ship 
that  he  was  enabled  to  pour  his  other  starboard  broad- 
side iTfto  the  Algerine  flag-ship,  and  shot  down  her 
mizen  topmast  also,  whereupon  the  Admiral,  with  his 
three  remaining  ships,  crowded  all  sail,  and  left  his  gal- 
lant comrade,  as  he  had  already  relinquished  the  "Bi- 
anco Cavallo,"  to  his  fate. 

On  perceiving  the  flight  of  these  vessels,  De  Lanyon, 
instead  of  resuming  the  action  with  the  "  Beechei," 
devoted  himself  to  the  repairs  of  his  own  ship.  The 
Algerine  commander-in-chief,  supposing  in  his  turn 
that  the  "St.  Catherine"  was  disabled,  and  would  fall 
an  easy  prey  to  his  arms,  returned  to  the  attack,  but 
was  met  by  the  "  St.  James,"  which  had  now  arrived 
on  the  scene  of  conflict,  and  poured  her  broadside  with 
so  good  effect  on  the  Algerine  flag-ship  that  her  com- 
mander, with  his  three  uninjured  vessels,  finally  took 
flight.  It  was  now  seven  o'clock,  and  the  night  set  in 
with  such  thick  darkness  and  rain  that  there  was  no 
alternative  left  but  to  discontinue  the  conflict.  When 
the  morning  dawned,  the  disabled  "Bianco  Cavallo" 
and  the  four  other  Algerine  vessels  had  entirely  disap- 
peared. The  "St.  James,"  "St.  Catherine,"  and 


228      '  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

"  Beecher,"  were  alone  in  sight,  and  widely  separated. 
The  two  Maltese  ships  succeeded  in  joining  each  other 
about  noon,  and  about  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon 
bore  down  together  upon  their  bold  antagonist  of 
yesterday's  fight.  Then  ensued  a  running  fight  for  two 
long  hours.  The  leading  ship,  the  "  St.  James,"  dis- 
charged her  guns  on  her  adversary  as  frequently  as  she 
could  do  so  with  any  chance  of  reaching  her,  and  the 
"Beecher,"  without  staying  her  course,  replied  with 
her  swivel  and  stern  guns.  About  four  o'clock,  the 
course  of  the  "  Beecher  "  was  sufficiently  slackened  to 
allow  the  "  St.  Catherine  "  to  come  up  with  her  consort 
and  to  join  in  the  fight.  By  a  well-directed  fire  the 
"St.  Catherine"  shot  away  the  mainmast  and  fore- 
castle foreyard  of  the  "  Beecher,"  while  a  well-directed 
shot  from  the  "  St.  James  "  cut  away  part  of  her  poop 
and  flag-staff. 

The  intrepid  captain  and  crew,  nothing  daunted  at 
the  dismantled  state  of  their  vessel,  or  at  the  diminution 
of  their  numbers,  but  encouraged  by  the  nearness  of 
Rasin  Gibel,  their  proposed  place  of  refuge,  persevered 
in  thsir  course,  and  plied  their  oars  with  the  utmost 
resolution  and  perseverance.  De  Lanyon,  determined 
if  possible  to  sink  his  adversary  rather  than  see  her 
escape,  approached  as  near  as  he  could,  and  poured  in 
a  broadside  at  close  quarters.  The  storm  of  iron, 
hurtling  and  crushing  through  her  timbers,  knocked 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  229 

two  or  three  port-holes  of  the  "  Beecher  "  into  one ;  — 

"  Her  giant  bulk  the  dread  concussion  feels, 
And,  quivering  with  the  wound,  in  torment  reels;" 

yet  she  remained  afloat,  and  quickly  resumed  her 
course  to  the  friendly  shore,  favored  by  wind  and 
curreirtr,  and  still  impelled  by  the  energetic  strokes  of 
her  rowers,  who  were  seen  working  at  their  oars, 
stripped  of  every  rag  of  clothes,  in  momentary  expec- 
tation of  being  obliged  to  swim  for  their  lives  by  the 
ship  sinking  under  their  feet.  These  herculean  efforts 
were  at  last  rewarded  with  a  well-merited  success ;  for 
they  had  arrived  so  near  the  shore  and  port  that  the 
Maltese  admirals,  in  spite  of  their  desire  to  capture  so 
brave  an  antagonist,  deemed  discretion  to  be  the  better 
part  of  valor,  and  gave  up  the  chase. 

There  is  a  curious  fact  recorded  in  connection  with 
this  contest.  At  the  time  it  commenced,  a  malignant 
fever  prevailed  on  board  the  "  St.  Catherine,"  causing 
severe  illness  and  mortality  among  the  crew ;  but  as 
soon  as  the  combat  began,  it  ceased.  De  Cintray,  from 
whose  journal  these  details  are  obtained,  attributed  this 
sudden  cessation  of  illness  to  the  disinfectant  power 
of  gunpowder.  It  is  more  probably  to  be  accounted 
for  by  the  force  of  mental  influences  and  of  intense 
physical  excitement. 

In  this  protracted  encounter  the  "St.  Catherine" 
fired  607,  and  the  "  St.  James  "  465,  cannon  balls ;  and 


280  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

the  two  ships  together  discharged  3,550  rounds  of  mus- 
ketry. The  "  St.  Catherine  "  received  during  the  fight 
143  cannon  shot  into  her  hull,  while  the  masts,  sails, 
and  rigging  in  each  vessel  were  very  much  injured. 
They  were  both  incapacitated  for  further  present  service, 
and  made  their  way  as  speedily  as  they  could  to  the 
island  of  Lampedusa,  for  refitting  and  repairs.  The 
incidents  of  this  memorable  contest  are  to  be  recognized 
to  this  day  among  the  illustrations  of  the  sea-fights 
painted  on  the  walls  of  the  palace  at  Valetta. 

De  Cintray  and  his  gallant  Vice- Admiral,  De  Lanyon, 
were  again  entrusted  with  the  command  of  the  fleet  in 
the  next  summer,  A.  D.  1711.  They  made  their  first 
cruise  towards  the  African  coast.  On  Wednesday, 
April  16th,  their  squadron,  consisting  of  the  four  ships 
of  war,  the  "  St.  James,"  "  St.  John,"  "  St.  Catherine," 
and  "Santa  Croce,"  sighted  at  the  distance  of  four 
leagues  a  large  vessel  carrying  the  Algerine  flag.  At 
about  3.30  P.  M.,  the  wind  blowing  fresh  from  the  west, 
the  "  St.  Catherine  "  got  within  range  on  the  enemy's 
starboard  beam,  and  opened  fire.  The  Algerine  at 
once  returned  her  shot,  and  thus  the  two  ships  contin- 
ued to  interchange  their  fiery  compliments  for  more 
than  an  hour,  at  the  expiration  of  which  time  the 
Algerine's  sails  and  rigging  had  been  greatly  cut  up, 
while  she  had  in  her  turn  shot  away  her  antagonist's 
main  topsail  yard,  and  effected  other  serious  damage. 


MERIDIAN  GLOBT.  231 

The  "  St.  John  "  came  up  at  the  end  of  this  first  hour 
of  the  fight,  and  placing  herself  at  the  enemy's  port 
side,  let  fly  a  broadside  and  a  volley  of  musketry.  The 
Algerine,  in  no  way  daunted  by  this  double  onset, 
replied  to  each  vessel  by  her  alternate  broadsides,  and 
poured  a  thick  fusillade  of  small  arms  and  swivel  guns 
on*  both  her  foes.  In  one  of  these  volleys  the  brave  De 
Lanyon  was  slain,  being  shot  by  a  bullet  through 
his  heart.  Just  at  the  moment  of  his  death,  the  "  St. 
James"  and  the  "Santa  Croce  "  joined  in  the  fray, 
and  opened  fire  on  the  devoted  Algerine.  The  com- 
mander of  the  vessel,  in  the  face  of  these  fearful  odds, 
persevered  in  his  resistance  for  three  hours,  and  only 
hoisted  the  white  flag  at  6.30,  when  his  ship  was  dis- 
masted and  unmanageable,  and  many  of  his  crew  slain. 
At  the  moment  of  his  striking  his  colors,  the  "St. 
John  "  was  crossing  the  bow  of  the  vessel,  and,  wheth- 
er by  accident  or  design,  a  volley  was  fired  from  the  Al- 
gerine right  among  her  crew,  whereupon  she  poured  in 
at  close  quarters  another  broadside.  On  this  the  slave 
rowers  on  board  the  Algerine  began  shouting  for 
mercy,  calling  out  that  the  ship  had  surrendered  and 
struck  its  flag. 

The  prize  on  this  occasion  proved  to  be  a  gigantic 
ship  which  the  Ottoman  Sultan  had  presented  to  the 
Dey  of  Algiers  on  his  receiving  from  him  the  keys 
of  the  fortress  of  Oran,  and  which  had  been  made 


232  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

by  the  Algerines  the  flag-ship  in  their  navy.  She 
was  pierced  for  46  guns,  but  had  only  36  mounted, 
so  that  her  defence  against  the  united  squadron  op- 
posed to  her  was  gallant  and  desperate.  She  carried 
a  crew  of  400  men,  of  whom  a  fourth  part  were  killed 
or  wounded  in  this  attack.  The  loss  of  the  assailants 
was  disproportionately  small,  only  three  men  killed  and 
six  wounded ;  but  the  death  of  the  brave  captain  of  the 
*'St.  Catherine"  dimmed  the  laurels  of  victory,  and 
cast  a  gloom  over  the  whole  fleet. 

After  a  delay  of  two  days  for  the  necessary  repairs, 
the  four  ships,  with  their  prize  in  company,  towed  by 
the  "St.  John,"  made  sail  for  Carthagena,  for  the 
more  honorable  interment  of  the  body  of  the  Chevalier 
De  Lanyon.  A  little  naval  episode  occurred  on  the 
voyage.  On  Tuesday,  April  22nd,  the  united  squadron, 
being  twelve  leagues  south  of  Cape  de  Ferro,  fell  in 
with  a  French  frigate,  the  "  Adelaide,"  under  the  com- 
mand of  M.  Capitaine  Pallas,  who  was  in  chase  of  a 
Turkish  galiot,  one  of  the  famous  Salie  rovers,  who 
preyed  indiscriminately  on  all  Christian  vessels.  The 
galiot,  finding  there  was  no  chance  of  escape,  and  pre- 
ferring rather  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Sea-Kings 
than  of  the  French,  steered  straight  for  the  vessels 
of  the  squadron.  M.  Pallas,  however,  contrived  to  cut 
her  off,  and  compelled  her  to  surrender  when  within  a 
league  of  the  nearest  Maltese  vessel,  the  "  St  Gather- 


MERIDIAN  GLORY.  233 

ine."  After  the  capture,  the  "Adelaide"  edged  down 
to  the  squadron,  and  having  saluted  with  seven  guns, 
took  boat  and  paid  the  Admiral  a  visit  of  ceremony. 
De  Cintray  demanded  a  share  of  the  prize,  asserting 
that  the  squadron  was  entitled  to  it,  as  having  assisted 
at*the  capture.  The  commander  of  the  "Adelaide" 
refused  to  acknowledge  the  claim,  declaring  that  his 
ship  had  been  engaged  in  the  chase  for  five  hours,  and 
that  the  "St.  Catherine"  had  contributed  nothing  to 
his  success.  De  Cintray  was  obliged  to  content  himself 
with  a  protest,  as  he  could  not  resort  to  force  against  a 
frigate  bearing  the  flag  of  so  illustrious  an  ally  and  of  so 
powerful  a  Christian  monarch  as  Louis  XIV.  The 
squadron  reached  Carthagena  in  safety  without  further 
adventure  on  Thursday,  April  24th. 

Immediate  preparations  were  made  for  the  solemn 
ceremonial  for  which  they  had  landed  at  this  place. 
At  eight  o'clock  A.  M.  on  the  next  morning,  Friday, 
April  25th,  the  coffin  containing  the  body  of  the  brave 
De  Lanyon  was  conveyed  in  the  launch  of  the  "St. 
Catherine"  to  the  Mole  at  Carthagena.  De  Cintray, 
with  a  retinue  of  Knights,  commanders,  and  officers, 
and  with  a  guard  of  honor,  composed  of  120  mariners 
of  the  squadron,  accompanied  the  launch  in  several 
boats,  with  oars  muffled.  The  funeral  cortege  was  re- 
ceived on  the  Mole  by  Don  Francis  de  Monocon,  the 
governor  of  the  fortress,  attended  by  the  chief  officers 


234  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

of  the  garrison.  A  solemn  procession  having  been 
formed  of  the  clergy  of  the  Cathedral,  of  the  monks 
and  friars  of  the  different  convents,  of  the  chief  resi- 
dents in  the  town,  and  of  the  captain  and  officers  of  the 
French  frigate  the  "  Adelaide,"  the  coffin  was  carried 
from  the  Mole  to  the  Cathedral  on  a  bier  borne  by  six 
knights.  The  Governor  De  Monocon,  De  Cintray, 
with  the  captains  of  the  "St.  John"  and  of  the  "San- 
ta Croce,"  acted  as  pall-bearers.  Soldiers  lined  the 
streets,  and  fired  a  volley  from  their  muskets  as  the 
procession  entered  the  square  of  the  Cathedral.  They 
then  joined  ranks,  and  fired  a  second  time  as  the 
body  was  carried  into  the  church.  The  coffin  was 
placed  under  a  splendid  catafalque,  with  160  wax 
candles  burning  around  it,  and  was  finally  deposited  in 
front  of  the  high  altar,  a  spot  generally  reserved  for  the 
bishops  of  the  church,  or  the  governor  of  the  fortress. 
During  the  whole  time,  from  the  body  being  placed 
in  the  launch  to  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremony,  each 
ship  fired  a  gun  every  seventh  minute.  When  the 
funeral  was  over,  De  Cintray  presented  to  the  Cathe- 
dral authorities,  in  memory  of  the  deceased  Vice-Ad- 
miral,  a  large  silk  Turkish  ensign,  captured  in  the 
Algerine  vessel,  in  attacking  which  he  had  lost  his  life. 
Such  was  the  respect  in  which  the  Knights  of  St.  John 
were  held  in  these  palmy  days  of  their  power!  Such 
were  the  high  honors  paid  even  in  their  deaths  to  these 
Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean. 


MERIDIAN   GLORY.  235 

The  English  had  frequent  occasion,  during  this  pe- 
riod of  their  naval  glory,  to  acknowledge  the  courtesy 
and  good  services  of  the  Maltese  war-squadron.  Al- 
though the  sovereign  of  England  had  no  personal 
connection  with  the  Order,  and  the  English  "  Langue  " 
htnT  long  ceased  to  be  an  integral  portion  of  their 
Fraternity,  yet  English  admirals  were  permitted  to 
resort  to  the  harbors,  and  to  make  use  of  the  arse- 
nals and  dock-yards  of  Malta.  The  ships  of  England, 
too,  at  all  times  received  assistance  from  their  fleet 
in  moments  of  emergency  or  distress.  One  remarkable 
instance  of  aid  thus  opportunely  rendered  occurred 
about  this  time.  On  Saturday,  May  30th,  A.  D.  1713, 
an  English  man-of-war,  carrying  sixty  guns,  named  the 
**  Monk,"  and  commanded  by  Captain  Cummoch,*  R. 
N.,  was  drifting,  without  mast  or  rudder,  after  a 
fearful  storm  in  the  waters  of  Noli.  The  Maltese 
squadron,  under  the  flag  of  De  Cintray,  discerned  her 
in  the  offing  soon  after  daybreak,  and,  hastening  to  her 
relief,  commanded  two  vessels  to  take  her  in  tow, 
and  to  accompany  her  in  safety  into  the  harbor  of 
Genoa.  This  vessel,  the  "  Monk,"  was  called  after  the 

*  Captain  Cummoch  was  dismissed  from  the  English  navy  on  the  accession 
of  George  I.,  in  1715,  as  a  Jacobite.  He  took  sen-ice  under  the  Spanish  flag, 
and  fought  off  Cape  Passaro,  on  the  llth  of  August,  1718,  against  Admiral 
Byng,  and  took  refuge  with  three  ships  at  Malta.  Ho  was  there  hlockaded 
by  Byng,  and  eventually  escaped  to  Messina.  He  was,  on  this  defeat,  dis- 
missed from  the  Spanish  service. 


236  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

celebrated  George  Monk,  Duke  of  Alberaarle,  who  was 
the  chief  instrument  in  the  restoration  of  Charles  II.  to 
the  throne.  She  was  laden  with  a  very  valuable  cargo 
of  1,500,000  Mexican  dollars,  which  she  was  conveying 
from  Cadiz  to  Marseilles,  and  was  also  honored  by 
the  presence  of  Monsignor  Spinola,  the  Nuncio  from 
the  Pope  to  the  court  of  France.  In  the  month  of  Au- 
gust, in  the  same  year,  the  fleet  of  De  Cintray  con- 
ferred another  favor  on  the  English  crown  by  convey- 
ing the  Earl  of  Peterborough  from  Leghorn  to  Palermo, 
whither  he  was  sent  as  the  ambassador  of  Queen  Anne 
to  congratulate  Victor  Amadeus,  Duke  of  Savoy,  on  his 
coronation  as  King  of  Sicily.*  De  Cintray  was  also 
bound  to  the  same  court  as  the  representative  of  the 
Grand  Master  Perellos  on  the  same  auspicious  occasion. 
His  embassy,  in  its  splendor  and  numbers,  far  outshone 
the  more  modest  pretensions  of  the  English  courtier. 
He  was  accompanied  by  the  large  number  of  120 
Knights,  who  were  conveyed  from  their  respective 
lodgings  to  the  royal  palace  with  much  state  and 
ceremony,  in  twenty-three  of  the  King's  carriages. 
This  large  number  of  "  Sea-Kings,"  associated  in  this 
'-honorable  and  auspicious  mission,  ma'y  seem  to  be  en- 

*  The  Duke  of  Savoy  became  King  of  Sicily  by  the  arrangement  of  the 
Treaty  of  Utrecht.  Charles  Mordaunt,  called  the  eccentric  Earl  of  Peter- 
borough, was  in  command  of  English  troops  which  were  defeated  in  the 
battle  of  Almanza,  fought  April  14th,  1707;  he  was  afterwards  sent  as  am- 
bassador to  Palermo  and  Vienna;  he  died  1735. 


MERIDIAN  GLOEY.  237 

tirely  out  of  proportion  to  the  small  extent  of  the 
dominion  of  the  Grand  Master,  so  that  Victor  Amadeus 
and  his  consort  might  have  been  excused,  even  if  they 
had  besought  Perellos 

"  A  little  to  disquantity  Ms  train."  * 

*The  position  and  importance  of  the  Grand  Master  were 
not,  however,  estimated  by  the  mere  extent  of  his 
fief  at  Malta,  but  by  his  headship  in,  and  by  his  govern- 
ment over,  a  Fraternity  co-extensive  with  Christian  Eu- 
rope. A  contemporary  witness  describes  the  court 
of  Perellos,  at  this  its  zenith  of  glory,  '*  as  presenting  a 
most  brilliant  appearance.  No  less  than  1,500  Knights, 
many  of  them  general  officers  in  every  army  in  Chris- 
tendom, formed  the  main  ornament  of  the  residence  of 
the  Order."  f  These,  no  doubt,  might  all  have  been 

described  as 

"  Men  of  choice  and  rarest  parts, 
That  all  particulars  of  duty  know, 
And  in  most  exact  regard  support 
The  worship  of  their  name."  J 

It  is  related  that  De  Cintray,  after  all  the  display 
and  retinue  with  which  his  embassy  was  accompan- 
ied, could  not  be  induced  to  attend  in  person  at  the  cor- 
onation. The  proud  old  knight  was  required  by  the 

*  Shakspeare's  Einy  Lear,  Act  I.,  so.  4. 
t  Porter's  Knights  of  Malta,  Vol.  II.,  p.  405. 
J  Shakspeare,  King  Lear,  Act  I.,  sc.  4. 


238  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

custom  of  the  court  to  leave  his  sword  behind  him  ; 
and  rather  than  do  so,  he  abstained  from  attending  the 
ceremony.  The  Knight  De  Chambray,  attached  to 
this  embassy,  has  left  this  account  of  his  visit  to  Pal- 
ermo: "Their  Majesties  held,  on  two  evenings  in 
the  week,  a  public  reception  in  a  magnificent  gallery 
in  the  palace.  At  these  parties,  it  was  the  custom 
for  the  King  and  Queen  to  sit  playing  at  cards  at 
two  different  tables,  while  her  Majesty's  maids  of 
honor  and  the  younger  portion  of  the  guests  amused 
themselves  by  dancing  to  the  music  of  a  brilliant  or- 
chestra, refreshments  being  handed  round  by  the  King's 
pages.  At  eleven  o'clock  their  Majesties  always  rose 
from  their  tables,  and  their  guests  retired."  Such, 
then,  were  the  employments,  temper,  and  demeanor 
of  our  heroes  in  this  period  of  their  maritime  glory  and 
dominion.  Their  war-vessels  were  ever  on  the  seas 
on  errands  of  chastisement,  mercy,  or  deliverance. 

"  How  gloriously  her  gallant  course  she  goes, 
Her  white  wings  flying — never  from  her  foes! "  * 

Their  great  sea-captains  were  always  ready  to  perform 
their  duties  as  the  champions  of  the  ocean.  In  every 
diversity  of  occasion,  in  calm  or  storm,  by  night  or  day, 
in  single  encounters  or  in  fights  against  superior  num- 
bers, in  protracted  running  contests,  or  in  decisive 

*  Byron's  Corsair. 


MERIDIAN  GLOKY.  239 

attempts  at  boarding,  in  the  perils  of  the  deep,  or  in 
the  enjoyments  of  home,  they  ever  exhibited 

"The  chance  and  change  of  a  sailor's  life, 
"Want  and  plenty,  rest  and  strife."  * 

They  were,  however,  more  than  mere  sailors,  or 
leaders  of  quasi-buccaneering  expeditions.  They  were 
men  of  refinement,  statesmen,  and  diplomatists,  fitted 
to  shine  in  the  chamber  of  a  court,  and  to  be  compan- 
ions to  kings.  Acts  of  self-sacrifice  and  noble  deeds 
were  the  true  sources  of  the  honor,  the  perpetual  fresh- 
springs  of  the  glory  of  the  "  Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean." 

*  Longfellow's  Building  qf  the  Skip. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

DECLINE  AND  FALL. 

"  Shrine  of  the  Mighty !    Can  it  be 
That  this  is  all  remains  of  Thee?  " 

BYBON'S  Giaour. 

THE  Sea-Kings  of  the  Mediterranean  at  the  close  of 
the  eighteenth  century  had  outlived  the  circumstances 
which  for  so  long  a  duration  had  imparted  life  to  their 
Order  and  vigor  to  their  achievements.  Turkish  ag- 
gression had  ceased.  The  Ottoman  Empire  was  impo- 
tent to  harm ;  and  as  soon  as  the  active  services  of 
their  great  sea-captains  were  uncalled '  for,  the  high 
purposes  of  their  famous  institution  were  lost  sight 
of,  their  noble  traditions  forgotten,  and  their  chivalry, 
hitherto  "sans  peur  et  sans  reproache,"  superseded  by 
idleness,  dissipation,  and  general  un worthiness. 

"  Yes,  self-abasement  paved  the  way 
To  villain  bonds,  and  despot's  sway."  * 

The  first  French  Revolution  was  the  proximate 
cause  of  the  abolition  of  the  Order.  The  leaders  of 
this  great  democratic  outbreak,  burning  with  hatred 

*  Byron's  Giaour. 
240 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  241 

against  kings,  princes,  and  nobles,  made  no  exception 
from  their  designs  of  universal  proscription  of  estab- 
lished authorities  in  favor  of  the  elective  sovereigns 
of  Malta.  Emanuel  de  Rohan,  the  then  reigning  Grand 
Master,  a  gallant  and  loyal  Frenchman,  had  given 
pretexts  and  provocations  for  their  enmity.  He  had 
manifested  sympathy  with  the  French  Refugees,  and 
lent  500,000  crowns  to  the  unfortunate  King  Louis 
XVI.  The  French  Directory,  in  retaliation  for  these 
acts,  enacted  that  every  Frenchman  who  continued 
to  be  the  member  of  an  Order  which  required  proofs 
of  nobility  for  admission  to  its  ranks,  should  forfeit  all 
the  rights  of  French  citizenship.  This  proclamation 
was  followed  by  a  decree,  dated  17th  September,  A.  D. 
1792,  entirely  annulling  "the  Order  of  Malta,"  and 
annexing  to  the  national  demesnes  all  its  Priories, 
Commanderies,  and  fiefs  in  France.  The  three 
"Langues"  of  Provence,  Auvergne,  and  France,  paid 
240,000  crowns  out  of  the  500,000  crowns  received 
from  all  countries  into  the  public  treasury;  so  that 
this  confiscation  was  a  grievous  blow,  and  despoiled  the 
Fraternity  at  a  stroke  of  one-half  of  its  whole  revenues. 
As  France  in  the  next  few  years  overwhelmed  the 
other  nations  on  the  continent  with  the  wave  of  con- 
quest, the  same  policy  was  persisted  in,  and  the  posses- 
sions of  the  Order  in  Italy  and  other  countries  were  in 
like  manner  alienated  and  despoiled. 
16 


242  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

This  decree  of  confiscation  was  only  the  beginning 
of  sorrows.  A  sorer  trial  was  at  hand.  The  virgin 
fortress,  which  had  never  yielded  to  a  foe,  and  which 
had  so  gloriously  repulsed  the  concentrated  power  of 
the  proudest  ruler  of  Islam,  was  now  to  lose  its  former 
fame  and  ancient  pride  of  place.  To  render  the 
disgrace  more  flagrant,  the  cup  of  humiliation  was 
prepared  by  Christian  hands.  The  young  General  of 
the  French  Republic,  Napolean  Buonaparte,  appeared 
before  the  fortifications  of  Valetta  with  the  whole 
French  fleet,  consisting  of  thirteen  ships  of  the  line, 
eight  frigates,  and  six  transports,  on  the  9th  day  of 
June,  1798,  and  demanded  the  unconditional  surrender 
of  its  ships,  guns,  and  forts.  The  reigning  chief, 
Ferdinand  Hompesch,  if  he  had  only  had  the  will  and 
courage,  might  have  offered  an  effectual  resistance  to 
this  proud  demand.  The  chances  in  his  favor  were 
vastly  greater  than  those  under  which  his  heroic  prede- 
cessors, Peter  D'Aubusson  and  John  de  la  Valette,  had 
made  their  defence.  He  had  5,000  trained  soldiers  in 
his  garrison,  1,200  cannon,  with  abundant  ammunition, 
impregnable  forts  and  trenches,  a  population  zealous  in 
their  determination  to  resist,  an  ample  supply  of  provis- 
ions for  the  troops  and  the  inhabitants.  He  had  only 
to  shut  his  gates  in  order  to  be  safe.  He  well  knew 
that  Napolean  could  not  delay  his  voyage,  nor  postpone 
for  the  capture  of  Malta  the  more  important  purpose 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  243 

of  his  expedition,  the  invasion  of  Egypt;  and  even  if 
he  had  remained  to  invest  the  fortress,  help  from 
England  and  from  Sicily,  then  at  war  with  France, 
would  certainly  and  speedily  reach  him.  But  Hom- 
pesh,  and  a  great  portion  of  his  companions  in  com- 
rugmd,  were  already  bought  with  French  gold ;  and  in 
the  face  of  all  his  advantages, —  in  spite  of  the  protest 
of  the  leading  native  residents,  in  forgetfulness  of  his 
knightly  vows  never  to  surrender  a  military  post,  in 
defiance  of  the  treaties,  especially  the  Treaty  of 
Utrecht,  by  which  he  was  bound  to  Europe  to  allow 
no  more  than  four  ships  of  war  of  any  nation  at  one 
time  to  enter  his  harbors,  and  with  a  pusillanimity 
scarcely  equalled  in  the  annals  of  history, —  he  complied 
with  the  young  General's  demand,  and  resigned,  with- 
out an  attempt  at  resistance,  his  forts,  ships,  city, 
and  island  into  his  hands.  Thus  the  "shrine  of  the 
mighty,"  the  rock-bound  home  of  the  Sea-Kings,  which 
for  centuries  had  been  the  foremost  bulwark  of  Chris- 
tendom against  the  Paynim,  was  captured  by  Christian 
soldiers.  On  Wednesday,  June  13th,  Buonaparte  en- 
tered the  harbor  amidst  salvos  of  artillery  from  his 
fleet,  and  a  salute  from  all  the  guns  of  the  fortress,  and 
inarched  at  the  head  of  his  Guards,  with  the  utmost 
display  of  military  pomp,  to  occupy  the  ramparts  sur- 
rendered into  his  hands.  So  intense  was  the  surprise 
and  wonder  of  the  conqueror  at  the  strength  and 


244  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

magnitude  of  the  trenches  and  fortifications,  that  on 
one  of  the  officers  of  his  staff  remarking  on  the  small 
number  of  the  garrison,  he  said,  "  It  is  well  that  there 
were  enough  to  open  the  gates,  for  otherwise  I  should 
have  been  perplexed  to  find  my  way  in.'r 

Buonaparte,  on  his  landing,  acted  with  all  the  license 
of  a  conqueror.  He  changed  the  names  of  the  gates, 
calling  the  Porta  Reale  the  Porta  Nationale,  streets, 
piazzas,  and  public  buildings ;  and  established  the  laws 
of  France  and  the  decrees  of  the  French  Directory. 
He  banished  Hompesch,  and  compelled  his  companions 
to  join  his  expedition  or  to  leave  the  island.  He 
compelled  the  Maltese  sailors  to  join  his  fleet  with  their 
two  largest  vessels,  and  imposed  a  heavy  fine  upon  the 
inhabitants.  He  robbed  the  palace,  the  auberges, 
churches,  and  convents  of  their  plate,  and  of  their 
vessels  of  gold,  silver,  and  precious  stones.  Even 
the  sacred  relics, —  the  hand  of  John  the  Baptist,  pre- 
sented by  Sultan  Bajazet,  and  the  image  of  the  Vir- 
gin of  Philermos,  found  no  favor  in  his  sight,  nor 
exemption  from  his  rapacity.  He  took  from  each  their 
rich  caskets  laden  with  diamonds,  rubies,  and  other 
costly  gifts,  and  left  nothing  beyond  the  mere  relics 
themselves  to  the  entreaties  of  Hompesch,  who  took 
them  with  him  from  the  island. 

On  Friday,  the  15th  of  June,  Buonaparte  resumed 
his  voyage  to  Egypt,  and  left  General  Vaubois,  one 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  24o 

of  his  trustiest  officers,  in  chafge  of  Malta  with  a  force 
of  4,000  men.  The  new  Governor,  in  accordance  with 
the  necessities  of  his  position,  established  strict  military 
law,  and  yet  sought  to  secure  the  sympathies  of  the 
native  population  by  the  celebration  of  a  great  national 
fete  in  honor  of  the  French  Republic.  This  proposed 
solemnity  was  regarded  by  Vaubois  with  childish  affec- 
tion, and  vast  preparations  were  made  to  impart  to 
it  dignity  and  importance,  as  the  inaugural  ceremony  of 
a  new  government  of  the  island.  A  vast  pyramid, 
ornamented  from  summit  to  base  with  tricolored  flags, 
approached  by  seven  steps,  and  emblazoned  on  its  four 
sides  with  pictures  representing  the  disembarkation  of 
the  French  army,  the  departure  of  Hompesch,  slaves 
with  their  chains  broken,  and  an  hieroglyphic  depicting 
the  freedom  of  commerce,  was  erected  in  the  inner 
court  of  the  ancient  palace.  Dowries  were  promised  to 
four  young  Maltese  women  who  should  marry  sailors  iu 
the  fleet ;  and  a  decree  was  issued  requiring  all  persons 
to  bring  their  patents  of  nobility  and  to  burn  them 
at  the  base  of  this  pyramid,  in  token  that  a  new  period 
of  universal  equality  and  fraternity  was  to  be  com- 
menced.* 


*  This  decree  is  given  in  Azzopardi '  s  Giornale  della  Preset  di  Malta,  p.  50 : — 
"Tutti  i  titoli  onorifici  suranno  abbrugiati  il  giorno  della  fcsta  nazionale 
delli  14  Luglio,  1798 ;  e  tutti'  i  cittadini  eke  ne  sona  possessed  sono  invitati 
a  fortarli  ai  piedi  delT  adber  della  liberta. 

"BOSREBON  RANSIJAT, 
"  Ptesidente  della  Commissione  di  Governo." 


246  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

Saturday,  July  14th,  was  fixed  for  this  august  cere- 
mony. Its  dawn  was  announced  by  loud  salvos  of  ar- 
tillery from  fortress  and  fleet.  At  ten  o'clock  the  four 
destined  brides,  attired  in  white  dresses,  and  attended 
by  their  accepted  bridegrooms,  waited  on  General  Vau- 
bois  at  the  palace,  who  himself  placed  a  garland  of  pink 
roses  on  the  head  of  each,  and  accompanied  them  to  the 
piazza  of  his  palace.  Here,  in  the  square  in  front  of  the 
National  Pyramid,  were  assembled  M.  Labiui,  the  Bish- 
op of  Malta,  with  his  clergy,  and  a  vast  crowd  of 
people  and  of  soldiers,  in  the  presence  of  whom  the 
marriage  service  was  completed,  and  the  address  of  the 
Bishop  spoken.  At  two  o'clock  a  splendid  procession 
was  marshalled  in  the  following  order,  and  proceeded 
from  the  palace  to  the  Admiral's  flag-ship  stationed  in 
the  Great  Harbor,  and  pavilioned  with  flags  from  bow 
to  stern.  A  company  of  French  Guards  with  drums 
and  trumpets  led  the  way;  and  next  to  them  a 
regiment  of  the  native  Maltese  with  band  and  military 
music.  Then  appeared  a  large  number  of  the  Civil 
Commission  of  the  Government,  in  their  official  cos- 
tumes of  black  coats,  white  waistcoats,  cocked  hats, 
and  rich  tricolored  sashes  crossing  their  breasts,  and 
reaching  to  their  knees,  accompanied  by  the  judges, 

"  All  titles  of  honor  are  to  be  burnt  on  the  day  of  the  national  fete,  the  14th 
of  July,  1798 ;  and  all  citizens  who  possess  them  are  invited  to  lay  them  at 
the  foot  of  the  Tree  of  Liberty. 

"  BOSREDON  RAJTSIJAT, 
"  President  of  the  Commission  of  the  Government" 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  247 

and  other  high  officials.  Next  to  them  came  a  company 
of  French  sailors,  followed  by  the  Maltese  sailors  in 
training  for  the  French  service,  and  succeeded  by  an- 
other regiment  of  French  Guards.  Close  after  them 
walked  the  brides  and  bridegrooms,  the  Bishop  and 
clergy,  and  the  members  of  the  conventual  establish- 
ments. To  these  succeeded  Vaubois  himself  with  a 
brilliant  staff,  while  the  whole  was  closed  by  a  French 
regiment'.  On  the  return  of  the  procession  to  the 
palace  a  Tree  of  Liberty  was  planted  by  Vaubois  in 
front  of  the  Pyramid,  and  a  simultaneous  salute  was 
fired  from  every  gun  in  the  fleet  and  fortress.  The 
patents  of  honor  were  next  laid  on  the  steps  of  the 
pedestal  by  the  knights  and  nobles,  and  were  publicly 
committed  to  the  flames.  The  whole  city  was  illumi- 
nated. Wine  and  refreshments  were  distributed,  and 
the  assembled  populace,  without  distinction  of  sex, 
rank,  or  position,  danced  in  the  momentary  excitement 
of  a  passing  popular  delirium  around  the  Pyramid  and 
Tree  of  Liberty. 

•  This  spell  of  wild  delight  soon  exhausted  itself.  The 
iron  of  a  foreign  rule  quickly  entered  into  the  soul 
of  the  people.  Vaubois  served  no  easy  task-master. 
However  humane  in  his  own  intentions,  he  had  to 
supply  the  necessities  of  Buonaparte,  and  to  meet 
the  exactions  of  the  French  Directory.  At  the  end 
of  August  a  French  ship  of  the  line,  the  "  Guillaume 


248  KNIQHT8  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

Tell,"  and  two  frigates,  the  "  Diane  "  and  "  La  Jus- 
tice," arrived  with  the  news  of  the  destruction  of  the 
French  fleet  at  the  battle  of  the  Nile,*  and  Vaubois 
was  at  once  obliged  to  resort  to  measures  which  soon 
turned  the  late  convulsive  merriment  of  the  populace 
into  the  most  bitter  sentiments  of  determined  exaspera- 
tion. He  closed  all  the  convents,  except  one  in  each 
of  the  capital  cities, —  Valetta,  Notabile,  and  Rabbato 
in  Gozo, — -and  confiscated  their  property  to  the  Gov- 
ernment. He  caused  all  the  natives  above  fifty  years 
of  age  to  enrol  themselves  in  veteran  companies  for 
military  home  service,  and  all  men  below  that  age 
to  prepare  for  foreign  service  either  in  the  army  or 
fleet.  He  laid  violent  hands  on  all  the  property  of 
value  pledged  at  the  Monte  de  Pieta,f  and  imposed 
new  taxes  upon  the  inhabitants,  both  of  the  towns  and 
country.  Last  of  all,  he  gave  most  offense  by  seizing 
the  sacred  vessels  and  furniture  yet  left  in  the  churches, 
or  in  the  custody  of  the  ecclesiastics. 

These    various    oppressions    excited    to   the    utmost 

*  Fought  by  Lord  Nelson  on  Thursday,  August  1, 1798,  on  which  occasion 
the  "  L' Orient,"  the  flag-ship  of  Admiral  Bruyere,  was  blown  to  pieces  by  an 
explosion  of  its  powder  magazine.  The  battle  lost  Egypt  to  Napoleon. 

t  The  Monte  de  Pieta  was  a  gigantic  pawnshop,  in  which  the  natives  bor- 
rowed money  on  small  articles  of  property.  It  is  still  retained  to  this  day  as 
a  Government  institution.  Its  managers  advance  two-thirds  of  their  value 
on  diamonds,  and  three-fourths  on  articles  of  gold  and  silver.  No  applicant 
caji  be  refused,  however  small  the  value  of  his  pledge.  Interest  is  charged 
at  5  per  cent.,  and  the  pledge  is  sold  unless  redeemed  within  three  years. 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  249 

the  passions,  prejudices,  and  hatred  of  the  Maltese, 
when  a  sudden,  unpremeditated,  but  successful  out- 
burst of  indignation  gave  birth  to  a  spark  which 
kindled  a  general  conflagration,  and  led  to  the  most  un- 
looked-for and  most  momentous  consequences.  The 
guard  of  French  soldiers  at  Notabile,  on  entering  the 
Cathedral  to  take  down  some  rich  damask  hangings 
from  its  walls,  were  resisted  in  the  very  act  of  spolia- 
tion, and  killed  by  the  angry  and  infuriated  population 
without  the  escape  of  a  single  man.  On  the  following 
day,  Monday,  September  3rd,  200  soldiers,  despatched 
by  Vaubois  from  Valetta  to  Notabile,  were  attacked 
and  fired  upon  by  some  peasants  from  behind  the  walls 
which  abound  everywhere  in  the  island  in  the  place  of 
fences,  and  were  driven  back  to  the  fortress.  From 
that  moment  the  tocsin  of  a  general  insurrection  was 
sounded.  The  Maltese  peasants  rose  as  one  man 
against  their  oppressors.  Then  a  sight  was  exhibited 
unparalleled  in  the  annals  of  history.*  The  invaders 
were  invaded.  The  foreign  general  and  soldiers,  who 
had  been  admitted  into  Valetta  by  the  unknightly 
connivance  of  its  legitimate  defenders,  were  henceforth 
confined  to  the  precincts  of  its  walls,  as  sure  prisoners 
as  mice  within  the  iron  girdings  of  their  trap.  No 

*  "  L'istoria  non  presente  vm  piu  sorprendenti  esempio  "  —  "  History  does 
not  present  so  surprising  an  example"  —  were  the  words  of  General  Gra- 
ham's address  to  the  Maltese  on  his  entering  upon  the  command  of  the 
Island — Aztopardi. 


250  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

army  with  banners,  no  might  of  the  Moslem,  no  serried 
rank  of  mailed  and  plumed  host  hemmed  them  in. 
They  were  the  victims  of  their  own  tyranny.  A  hith- 
erto despised,  unarmed,  dispirited  population,  impelled 
by  a  sense  of  outraged  humanity,  and  stimulated  by 
the  promptings  of  a  national  instinct,  rose  in  their 
might,  and  commenced  a  protracted,  determined,  and 
eventually  successful  resistance.  They  lacked  neither 
wise  heads  to  devise,  nor  strongs  hands  and  hearts  to 
execute,  their  j^lans.  They  sent  out  vessels  to  implore 
the  aid  of  the  British  and  Sicilian  fleets,  obtained 
cannon  from  Notabile,  and  from  the  outlying  forts  in 
the  island  ;  and  it  will  ever  stand  on  record  as  a 
remarkable  fact,  that  when  the  "Sea-Kings  of  the 
Mediterranean "  were  false  to  their  ancient  fame,  the 
peasautrj7  of  the  island,  under  their  own  chosen  leaders, 
the  chief  of  whom  were  Xavier  Caruana,  an  ecclesiastic 
of  Notabile,  and  Vincenzo  Borg,  a  herdsman  of  Bircar- 
cara,  by  their  own  unaided  pluck,  and  in  their  fiery 
indignation,  succeeded  in  driving  the  invading  French 
soldiery  from  every  inland  post,  and  in  confining  Vau- 
bois  and  his  troops  within  the  close  limits  of  their 
fortifications. 

These  noble  and  unlooked-for  exertions  were  within 
a  short  time  materially  helped  by  foreign  co-operation. 
Lord  Nelson,  the  Admiral-in-Chief  of  the  English  fleet 
in  the  Mediterranean,  as  soon  as  these  tidings  reached 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  251 

him,  despatched  four  Portuguese  ships  of  the  line, 
which  entered  the  Marsa  Sirocco  harbor  on  Tuesday, 
the  18th  of  September.  On  the  following  25th  of 
October  Lord  Nelson  arrived  before  Valetta  with  four- 
teen ships-of-war,  and  summoned  Vaubois  to  surrender, 
with  4Jie  permission  to  leave  the  island  with  the  full 
honors  of  war.  The  demand  was  refused.  Malta  was 
at  once  declared  to  be  in  a  state  of  siege,  which  was 
protracted  for  two  years.  Neither  combatant  was  suffi- 
ciently strong  to  obtain,  throughout  this  long  interval, 
a  decided  triumph  over  the  other.  The  French  army, 
with  the  crews  of  the  three  ships  from  the  battle  of  the 
Nile,  only  numbered  6,000  men,  while  a  hostile  popula- 
tion inside  their  walls  required  the  presence  of  the 
garrison  to  restrain  them  from  rebellion  and  revolt. 
The  Maltese  militia  with  the  sailors  of  the  Portuguese 
and  English  ships,  barely  reached  5,000  men,  and  had 
an  immense  circuit  to  invest  from  Fort  Tigne  to  Rica- 
soli,  while  the  English  fleet  prevented  all  ingress  to,  or 
egress  from,  the  harbor.*  This  siege,  consequently, 
from  its  commencement  to  its  end,  was  a  blockade 
rather  than  an  attack.  There  was  the  occasional  fire 
or  the  sustained  bombardment  from  the  batteries  or 


*  So  effectually  did  the  English  fleet  discharge  this  duty,  that,  however 
tempestuous  the  wind,  or  stormy  the  eea,  the  ships  were  never  away  from 
their  position  for  two  days  torjether.  Only  fifteen  vessels  succeeded  in 
reaching  the  harbor  during  the  first,  and  still  fewer  in  the  second,  year  of 
the  siege. — Azzopardi. 


252  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

ramparts  by  night  or  by  day ;  the  shot  ever  ready  for 
the  too  bold  or  too  careless  sentinel  who  should  expose 
his  person  on  the  walls  or  entrenchments;  the  endur- 
ance alike  by  besiegers  and  besieged  of  hard  fare,  short 
commons,  scanty  pay,  severe  sicknesses.  But  the  spir- 
ited sorties,  the  hand-to-hand  encounters,  the  brilliant 
conflicts,  the  bold  attempts  at  escalade,  the  personal 
combats,  such  as  breathed  a  soul  and  spirit  into  the 
stern  resistances  to  the  Moslem  invasions  previousl}' 
recorded  in  this  history,  were  entirely  wanting. 

An  English  sailor,  Captain  John  Alexander  Ball, 
was  the  hero  of  the  siege.  Appointed  by  Lord  Nelson, 
in  November,  1798,  to  the  command  of  the  sailors 
landed  to  help  the  Maltese,  he  soon  became  the  life 
and  soul  of  the  revolt,  and  the  darling  idol  of  the  natives. 
Equally  wise  in  council  and  active  in  camp,  Ball  sug- 
gested the  revival  of  the  Consilio  Populare,  or  the 
popular  council,  which  formed  the  Goverment  of  Malta 
previous  to  its  occupation  by  its  Sea-King  rulers.  This 
assembly  was  admirably  adapted  to  give  adhesion  and 
confidence  to  the  native  population.  It  was  composed 
of  ecclesiastics,  the  representatives  of  the  cathedral  and 
parochial  clergy,  of  some  Maltese  nobility  who  had 
escaped  a  confinement  in  the  city  of  Valetta,  and  of 
representative  delegates  elected  by  their  countrymen 
from  each  of  the  twenty-two  casals  or  districts  into 
which  the  island  was  divided.  This  congress,  when 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  253 

constituted,  chose  Ball  as  its  President,  and  under  bis 
direction  and  authority  ably  discharged  all  the  func- 
tions of  government:  arranging  finances,  imposing 
taxes,  borrowing  money,  providing  hospitals,  food,  and 
shelter,  promoting  commerce,  and  negotiating  with  for- 
eign courts. 

At  the  end  of  the  first  six  months  of  the  siege,  a 
bold  attempt  was  made  by  the  native  insurgents  to  gain 
the  fortress  by  a  coup  de  main.  They  contrived  a  plot 
by  which  some  residents  within  the  walls  were  to  kill, 
at  midnight,  the  sentinels  at  the  landing-place  of  the 
Marsa  Muscetto  Harbor,  and  to  admit  a  band  of  300 
armed  Maltese,  who  were  to  seize  during  the  night  the 
palace,  barracks,  and  arsenals,  and  to  be  assisted  by  a 
general  rising  of  the  disaffected  population.  This  con- 
spiracy was  discovered  by  a  slight  circumstance,  which 
had  not  been  foreseen  by  its  projectors.  Vaubois,  out 
of  respect  for  the  prejudices  of  the  Maltese,  allowed 
the  public  theater*  to  be  closed  on  a  Friday;  but  on 
this  particular  evening  he  had  ordered  a  French  comedy 
for  the  amusement  of  his  officers.  The  commander  of 
Fort  Manoel,  General  Baudard,  accompanied  by  his 
adjutant,  Captain  Roussel,  were  present,  and  took  boat 
about  ten  o'clock  in  the  evening  at  the  Marsa  Muscetto 
landing  to  cross  to  their  own  quarters.  They  imagined 

*  This  was  the  Theater  Manoel,  in  the  Strada  Teatro,  not  far  from  the 


254  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

that  they  had  seen  a  number  of  men  hiding  below  the 
walls,  and,  on  reaching  the  fort,  sent  boats  across  filled 
with  soldiers,  who,  after  a  bloody  struggle,  seized 
thirty-six  of  the  band,  and  put  to  flight  the  others. 
The  friends  of  the  plot  within  the  walls  were  discov- 
ered, and  paid  for  their  attempt  with  the  forfeiture  of 
their  lives. 

The  native  residents  in  the  fortress  felt  at  this  time 
the  severest  pressure  of  the  siege.  Every  article  of  food 
had  enormously  increased  in  value.  Pork  and  cheese, 
which  sold  at  four  to  six  sous  a  pound,  were  now  with 
difficulty  purchased  at  three  francs  and  eight  sous  the 
pound.  Pigeons  and  rabbits  and  chickens,  which  cost 
a  franc  each,  had  now  risen  to  six,  seven,  and  twenty- 
four  francs  each.  Eggs,  which  were  worth  a  sou,  were 
now  worth  eight  sous  each ;  and  a  bottle  of  common  wine 
sold  for  two  and  three  francs.  Wood  had  become  ex- 
ceedinglj'  scarce  —  so  much  so  that,  to  secure  fuel  for  his 
bake-house,  Vaubois  was  compelled  to  break  up  and  to 
burn  the  old  galleys  and  vessels  of  the  fleet  of  the  Grand 
Masters.  Two  forms  of  sickness  claimed  many  victims. 
A  curious  epidemic  prevailed  which  struck  the  sentinels 
with  blindness  during  the  night,  and  restored  their  sight 
in  the  morning.  The  scurvy  also  was  frequently  fatal ; 
though  this  was  alleviated  by  a  drink  of  water  boiled 
from  hops,  and  by  the  use  of  the  vegetables  which  the 
French  general,  with  wise  forethought,  had  commanded 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  25b 

his  soldiers  to  plant  on  all  the  slopes  of  their  bastions 
and  trenches.  These  visitations  of  scarcity  and  sickness 
were  not  the  only  sufferings  to  which  the  townsmen 
were  exposed.  While  on  the  one  hand  the  French  Gov- 
ernment stopped  all  salaries  and  public  payments  from 
the  treasury,  on  the  other  they  demanded  large  taxes 
and  impositions  from  the  inhabitants.  In  addition  to 
this,  they  compelled  them  to  labor,  without  pay  or  re- 
ward, in  the  extensive  military  works  required  for  the 
defense  of  the  fortress.  No  exemption  was  allowed  from 
this  forced  service  except  priests.  The  new  claim,  of  a 
common  citizenship,  and  of  universal  equality,  found  its 
legitimate  consequence  in  compelling  the  ex-baron  to 
work  side  by  side  with  the  mechanic,  fisherman,  or 
private  soldier. 

There  was,  however,  one  alleviation  and  mode  of  es- 
cape from  these  sufferings.  Whether  from  an  interested 
policy  on  the  part  of  Vaubois  to  reduce  the  number  of 
persons  supported  by  his  resources,  or  from  the  compar- 
ative harralessness  of  the  siege  diminishing  the  hardships 
of  the  contest,  there  was  not,  except  on  some  temporary 
occasion,  any  let  or  hindrance  to  the  resident  town  pop 
ulation  leaving  the  beleaguered  city.  After  some  little 
deliberation  between  the  contending  generals,  this  be- 
neficent arrangement  became  for  some  time  an  acknowl- 
edged usage  of  the  contest.  On  the  day  appointed 
a  long  train  of  families,  men,  women,  and  children  of 


256  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

all  ranks  and  classes,  amounting  sometimes  to  several 
hundreds,  removing  what  household  goods  a  small 
handbarrovv  could  carry,  came  out  from  the  heated, 
plague-stricken  fortress.  Ball  himself,  on  more  than 
one  occasion,  superintended  these  arrangements  in  his 
own  person.  The  Porte  des  Borubes,  the  appointed  gate 
of  egress,  was  thrown  wide  open.*  A  white  flag  floated 
above  its  battlements,  and  another  correspondent  white 
pennon  surmounted  the  nearest  entrenchments  of  the 
native  insurgents.  The  scared  and  motley  crowd,  with 
gaunt  faces  and  shrunken  limbs,  were  received  with 
congratulations  by  their  friends,  aijd  were  supported  by 
the  attention  and  foresight  of  their  English  President 
and  protector.  The  same  spirit  of  courtesy  distinguished 
the  whole  of  this  long  contest.  On  several  occasions, 
when  the  wives  of  the  officers  of  the  French  garrison  were 
taken  prisoners  by  the  English  vessels,  or  when  private 
letters  were  found  in  the  captured  prizes,  both  the  ladies 
and  letters  were  sent  with  a  flag  of  truce  into  the  fortress. 
On  one  occasion,  Saturday,  23rd  of  August,  1799,  Cap- 
tain Ball  himself,  accompanied  by  the  Marquis  Nyssa,  the 
Admiral-in-Chief  of  the  Portugese  blockading  squadron, 
were  admitted,  on  their  own  request,  to  an  interview 
with  General  Vaubois.  The  meeting  was  conducted 

*  This  permission  to  leave  the  fortress  was  used  to  such  an  extent,  that 
by  the  month  of  September,  1799,  the  population  of  40,000  persons  resident 
within  its  walls  was  reduced  to  13,000. 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  257 

with  considerable  ceremony.  The  Fort  Manoel  was  the 
scene  of  their  meeting.  The  whole  way  from  the  Porte 
des  Bombes  to  the  fort,  a  distance  of  a  mile,  was  lined 
with  soldiers  under  arms.  On  Ball  alluding  to  a  pro- 
posal for  capitulation,  Vaubois  at  once  interrupted  him, 
ins-istiug  that,  if  the  question  was  introduced,  the  inter- 
view must  terminate.  On  the  return  of  the  Admirals  to 
their  own  quarters,  the  French  soldiers  cried  out  from 
their  ranks,  "Death  rather  than  surrender." 

This  protracted  siege  naturally  attracted  the  attention 
of  Europe.  Paul,  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  was  led  by 
special  circumstances  to  take  a  particular  interest  in  its 
progress  and  success.  Hompesch,  the  exiled  Grand 
Master,  with  many  of  his  companions,  had  sought  pro- 
tection at  St.  Petersburg,  and  had  made  an  earnest  re- 
quest to  the  Czar  to  become  the  head  and  protector  of 
the  Sea-Kings.  In  the  month  of  December,  1799,  M. 
Italinski  was  deputed  to  attend  the  Maltese  Congress,  as 
an  Ambassador  from  Paul,  and  to  declare  the  willing- 
ness of  his  Imperial  master  to  accept  the  new  dignity 
offered  to  him,  and  his  intention  to  admit  the  nobler  na- 
tives* of  Malta  to  the  honors  of  the  Order.  This  ad- 

*  "  Malta  and  its  dependencies  will  form  a  Grand  Priory  for  the  benefit 
and  honor  of  the  Maltese  nobles." — Azzopardi.  This  may  be  a  suitable  op- 
portunity to  state  that  Hompesch,  during  this  visit  to  St.  Petersburg,  pre-  . 
sented  to  the  Emperor  Paul,  the  two  valued  relics  of  which  such  frequent 
mention  has  been -made  —  the  hand  of  John  Baptist  and  the  image  of  the 
Virgin  of  Philermos.  They  are  both  preserved  to  this  day  with  scrupulous 
care  in  the  Winter  Palace  of  the  Emperor  at  St.  Petersburg. 
17 


258  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

dress  of  M.  Italinski  was  received  by  the  "  Consilio  Pop- 
ulare "  with  the  liveliest  expressions  of  satisfaction, 
though  the  proposals  of  the  Emperor  never  reached  a 
permanent  accomplishment.  Neither  were  the  British 
Parliament  and  nation  unmindful  of  the  exigencies  of 
the  Maltese,  nor  of  their  own  interest  in  the  speedy  ter- 
mination of  its  blockade.  In  the  last  week  of  December, 
1799,  two  English  regiments,  the  30th  and  89th,  were 
landed  in  the  Marsa  Sirocco  Harbor  under  the  command 
of  Major  General  Graham,  afterwards  Lord  Lynedoch. 
He  issued,  on  his  arrival,  a  spirited  address  to  the  Mal- 
tese,* and  conducted  the  land  operations  of  the  siege 
with  greater  vigor.  If  credit  was  to  be  given  to  Baron 
Ransijat,  the  President  of  the  French  Civil  Government, 
who  was  present  all  through  the  siege,  the  French  sol 
diers  were  not  at  all  daunted  by  this  increased  vehe- 
mence in  the  attack  of  their  opponents.  Their  courage 
rose  in  proportion  to  their  need.  They  would  not  hear 
of  a  surrender.  Their  barrack  rooms  and  sentry-boxes 
re-echoed  with  a  song,  the  refrain  of  which  was 

"  Le  Francais  salt  combattre, 

Mais  capituler — non,  non,  nonl" 
"  The  French  can  fight, 

But  cannot  yield." 

The  winter  of  1799  — 1800  was  unexceptionably  fine, 
almost  a  perpetual  spring,  so  (hat  the  English  troops 
*  "  To  arms,  Maltese !    Let  the  general  cry  of  the  islands  be,  'God  and  our 
country!'  " — Azzopardi,  p.  154. 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  259 

had  no  Crimean  hardships  to  endure.  But  with  the  ad- 
vancing year  the  sufferings  of  their  antagonists  were 
greatly  aggravated.  By  the  month  of  May  the  garrison 
had  eaten  every  horse,  mule,  and  ass  in  the  fortress. 
The  oil  which  gave  a  relish  to  their  vegetables  was 
exhaifcfed.  Fuel  for  the  ovens  was  with  difficulty  pro- 
cured. The  prices  of  every  article  of  food  had  prodig- 
iously increased.  Pork  was  7  francs,  8  sous,  a  pound ; 
salt  meat,  2  francs,  10  sous;  cheese,  8  francs,  15  sous, 
fish,  from  2  to  3  francs;  a  fowl,  52  to  60  francs;  a 
pigeon,  12  francs;  a  rabbit,  11  francs;  an  egg,  16  sous; 
a  bottle  of  wine  or  vinegar,  4  francs,  of  brandy,  8  francs; 
a  pound  of  sugar,  22  francs,  and  a  pound  of  coffee,  26 
francs.  Rats  and  cats  were  delicacies ;  a  good  rat  was 
worth  from  2  to  3  francs.*  An  amusing  anecdote  is  told 
in  regard  to  these  delicacies.  The  grand  preserves  of 
the  Goverment  bakehouse  were  kept  to  the  last,  and  on 
the  day  appointed  for  the  chase,  55  "gros  et  gras"  rats 
(55  fine  fat  rats)  rewarded  the  labor  of  the  hunters. 
The  water,  fortunately,  did  not  fail.  Although  the 
Wignacourt  Aqueduct,  by  which  supplies  of  fresh  water 


*  "Besides  the  asses,  mules,  and  horses,  which  we  have  eaten  for  some 
time,  the  cats  and  dogs  are  eaten,  and  also  a  quantity  of  rats.  The  last 
charge  for  these  animals  was  made  in  the  military  bakehouse,  where  they 
goi  fifty-five  monsters.  This  was  left  to  the  last,  because  it  was  thought 
that  these  would  be  fatter  and  larger  than  the  rest —  'parcequ'ils  y  etoicnt 
plus  gras  et  plus  gros  qu'ailleurs.' "  — Cf.  Journal  du  sieye  ct  Blocus  de 
Maite.  Par  le  Citoyen  BOSKEJON  BANSJJAT.  Paris.  P.  25(i. 


260  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

were  brought  from  the  Bingemma  Hills  to  Valetta,  waa 
cut  off,  yet  the  cisterns  attached  to  the  houses  and  hos- 
pitals contained  sufficient  for  the  wants  of  the  inhabi- 
tants, of  whom  the  native  population  only  numbered 
7,000  persons. 

These  sufferings,  however  courageously  borne,  indi- 
cated the  beginning  of  the  end.  The  pressure  of  the 
scarcity  was  so  felt  that  every  mouth  was  considered; 
and  Vaubois,  at  this  crisis,  permitted  the  actors  at  the 
Fort  Manoel  Theater  to  leave  the  city.  Poor  fellows  1 
They  consisted  of  a  troop  of  Italian  singers,  and  had,  up 
to  this  time,  been  compelled,  against  their  oft-repeated 
remonstrance,  to  remain  for  the  amusement  of  the  garri- 
son. The  French  General,  too,  under  the  pressure  of 
his  situation,  made  a  great  effort  to  communicate  with 
his  own  Government,  and  resolved,  in  spite  of  the 
blockade,  to  despatch  h'is  flag-ship,  the  "  Guillaume 
Tell,"  to  France.  He  put  on  board  a  number  of  his  in- 
valids, a  troop  of  his  best  soldiers,  and  a  picked  crew  of 
sailors,  under  the  command  of  a  veteran  and  experienced 
commander,  Admiral  Decres.  A  night  towards  the  end 
of  March,  when  there  was  no  moon,  and  when  a  favora- 
ble wind  was  blowing,  was  chosen  for  this  desperate  at- 
tempt. The  departure  of  the  ship  was  watched  from  the 
walls  and  ramparts  with  the  utmost  interest  by  the 
French  troops,  and  by  the  remaining  population  of  the 
town.  They,  however,  were  not  the  only  watchers. 


DECLINE  AND  FALL.  261 

The  intention  of  Vaubois  had  been  fully  divined  by  the 
besiegers.  The  preparation  of  the  great  flag-ship  had  not 
escaped  their  vigilant  observation,  and  the  eyes  of  the 
English  artillerymen  too  surely  "witnessed  the  departure 
of  the  "  Guillaume  Tell."  The  ship,  however,  by  a  pre- 
concerted arrangement,  was  allowed  to  get  so  far  away 
from  the  port  that  she  could  not  return,  and  then  the  fleet 
was  made  acquainted  with  her  sailing  out  by  the  display 
of  blue  lights,  and  the  pre-arranged  signals  of  the  can- 
nons. The  English  men-of-war,  the  "  Lion "  and  "Pen- 
elope," 

"  Armed  with  thunder,  clad  with  wings," 

were  immediately  despatched  upon  her  track,  and  came 
up  with  her  off  Cape  Passaro,  about  sixty  miles  from 
Malta.  Decres  made  a  resolute  resistance.  Broadside 
after  broadside  was  interchanged,  until  at  last  the 
V  Guillaume  Tell,"  having  had  her  masts  shot  away, 
her  Admiral  wounded,  and  207  of  her  crew  killed,  was 
obliged  to  strike  her  flag. 

This  loss  of  his  flag-ship  was  announced  with  all  due 
solemnity  to  Vaubois  by  an  officer  sent  for  that  purpose 
by  the  English  Admiral  with  a  flag  of  truce.  Nor  were 
these  all  the  evil  tidings  of  which  he  was  the  bearer. 
He  was  further  commissioned  tp  inform  the  French 
General  that  four  vessels  of  war,  despatched  to  his 
assistance  from  Toulon,  and  laden  with  provisions  and 
ammunition  of  war,  had  also  fallen  into  the  hands  of 


262  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

the  English.  Vuubois,  however,  and  his  colleague, 
Admiral  Villeneuf,  undaunted  by  this  accumulation  of 
misfortunes,  determined  to  persevere  in  their  defence 
of  the  fortress  committed  to  their  trust.  For  another 
three  months  they  held  their  own  against  all  the  efforts 
of  the  insurgents  and  their  English  auxiliaries. 

At  the  end  of  June  considerable  additional  reinforce- 
ments were  received  into  the  island,  by  the  arrival  of 
two  more  English  regiments,  the  35th  and  48th,  under 
the  command  of  Major-General  Pigott,  and  of  two 
Sicilian  regiments.  The  troops  of  the  besiegers  now, 
for  the  first  time  since  the  commencement  of  the  siege, 
equalled  those  of  the  besieged,  and  the  operations  were 
pressed  with  more  vigorous  effect.  For  six  weeks  after 
the  arrival  of  these  new  troops,  Vaubois  persevered  in 
his  obstinate  resistance,  until  he  was  obliged,  by  the 
desperate  situation  of  his  army,  ta  make  one  final  effort 
to  obtain  help  from  his  countrymen.  With  this  view, 
on  the  night  of  the  23rd  of  August,  he  sent  off  the  two 
remaining  frigates,  the  "  Diane "  and  "  La  Justice." 
These  vessels  were  ordered,  on  their  leaving  the  harbor, 
to  sail  in  two  different  directions,  in  the  hope  that  one 
might  escape.  The  bold  design,  however,  failed. 
Both  vessels  were  captured  by  the  blockading  squad- 
ron, and  were  ostentatiously  paraded  on  the  next  morn- 
ing within  sight  of  the  fortifications  of  Valetta,  under 
the  custody  of  the  English  fleet.  In  the  face  of  these 


DECLINE   AND  FALL.  263 

continued  disasters  and  of  an  approaching  famine,  with 
his  garrison  greatly  reduced,  without  help  from,  or  com- 
munication with,  his  own  country,  Vaubois  was  at  last 
convinced  that  he  had  done  all  that  honor,  patriotism, 
or  duty  required,  and  sent  on  Tuesday,  the  2nd  of  Sep- 
tember, an  officer  to  the  English  head-quarters  to  pro- 
pos£  the  surrender  of  the  fortress. 

On,  the  next  day,  at  twelve  o'clock,  Major-Gen eral 
Pigott  and  Commodore  Martin,  deputed  by  Lord  Nel- 
son, entered  Valetta,  and  arranged  with  Vaubois  and 
Villeneuf  the  precise  terms  of  the  capitulation.  The 
conditions  agreed  upon  were  framed  in  a  peculiarly 
favorable  spirit  towards  the  conquered.  The  fortress 
of  Valetta  and  the  island  t)f  Malta  were  to  be  given  up 
to  the  English  troops  and  squadron,  and  to  be  placed 
under  the  protection  of  Great  Britain.  Vaubois  and 
his  army  were  allowed  to  march  as  far  as  the  harbor 
with  all  the  honors  of  war,  thence  to  be  conveyed  to 
Marseilles,  on  their  parole  not  to  fight  against  England 
until  they  were  exchanged  as  prisoners  of  war.  On 
the  next  day,  Thursday,  September  4th,  the  French 
sentinels  were  withdrawn  from  Forts  Florian,  Tigne, 
and  Ricasoli,  and  these  exterior  fortifications  were 
occupied  by  English  regiments.  On  Monday,  Septem- 
ber 8th,  Vaubois  and  his  guards  mustered  on  the 
parade-ground  of  the  palace,  and  marched,  at  four  P.  M. 
to  the  Marina,  where  they  embarked  on  the  English 


264  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

vessels.  The  troops  in  excess  of  the'  accommodatioa 
provided  in  the  ships  were  confined  to  Fort  Manoel  as 
prisoners  of  war,  until  the  vessels  returned  to  convey 
them  to  their  own  country. 

If  this  termination  of  the  siege  of  Malta  was  a  source 
of  humiliation  to  the  defiant  but  discomfited  Vaubois, — 
if  he  experienced  pain  in  contrasting  his  entrance  into 
the  fortress  in  all  the  pride  of  republican  aggression, 
with  his  departure  as  a  prisoner  of  war  in  the  vessels  of 
a  foreign  foe,  there  was  at  least  one  man  to  whom  it 
was  a  source  of  unfeigned  satisfaction  and  rejoicing. 
Sir  John  Alexander  Ball,  (for  to  that  dignity  he  had 
now  been  elevated  for  his  services,)  had  borne  the  heat 
and  burden  of  the  siege.  For  two  long  }^ears,  under 
the  thickest  clouds  of  doubt  and  tribulation,  his  voice 
had  rallied,  his  enthusiasm  supported,  and  his  counsel 
guided  the  Maltese  insurgents,  and  now  he  reaped  the 
recompense  of  his  reward  by  seeing  the  final  exoulsion 
of  the  invader,  and  the  successful  issue  of  the  resistance 
of  the  natives  to  their  oppressors.  Within  an  hour  of 
Voubois'  march  to  the  harbor  he  entered  Valetta  in 
triumphal  procession  at  the  head  of  his  peasant-militia, 
who,  having  served  their  country  in  the  field,  had  a 
right  to  share  in  the  honors  of  the  victory.  Seated  in  a 
carroche  (a  coach  on  two  wheels,  drawn  by  one  horse, 
and  peculiar  to  the  country),  with  a  Maltese,  Baron 
Francisco  de  Gauchi,  by  his  side,  dressed  in  the  cos- 


Queen  Elizabeth  at  Tilbury.         p.  264. 


DECLINE  AND   FALL.  265 

tume  of  the  Capitaine  di  Verga,*  an  officer  of  high  dis- 
tinction among  the  Maltese  prior  to  the  surrender  of 
the  island  to  Lisle  Adam,  and  accompanied  by  all  the 
members  of  the  Consilio  Populare,  Ball  was  received  by 
the  population  with  wild  excesses  of  delight.  The 
loudest  acclamations  natural  to  the  joy  of  a  long-ex- 
pected deliverance,  and  the  clamor  of  bells  from  every 
steeple  in  Valetta,  marked  the  progress  of  the  President 
of  the  National  Congress  as  he  passed  from  the  Port 
des  Bombes  to  the  Cathedral  of  St.  John.  He  first  en- 
tered the  church,  with  his  council  and  officers,  to  at- 
tend the  "  Te  Deum,"  sung  by  the  bishop  and  clergy 
in  gratitude  for  the  restoration  of  their  island,  and  from 
thence  walked  to  the  palace  to  take  formal  possession 
of  the  Government  in  the  name  of  the  King  of  England, 
as  Protector  of  Malta  and  of  the  Maltese,  while,  amidst 
the  thunder  of  a  general  salute,  the  flag  of  England  was 
erected  on  the  tower  of  St  Elmo. 

The  echo  of  this  royal  salute  was  the  death-knell  of 
the  ancient  Sea-Kings,  the  token  and  symbol  that  their 
sovereignty  had  for  ever  passed  away.  Never,  indeed, 
has  history  recorded  a  more  mournful  termination  of 
a  great  and  glorious  institution.  An  Order  which  had 
for  centuries  been  the  honor  and  boast  of  Christendom, 

*  The  Capitano  di  Verga,  or  the  royal  officer,  also  styled  the  Captain  of 
the  City.— Cf.  Authentic  Materials  for  a  History  of  Malta,  By  W.  ETON. 
London:  1802.  Page  9. 


266  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

which  had  on  more  than  one  occasion  saved  Europe 
from  subjection  to  the  Moslem,  whose  deeds  had  been 
sung  by  minstrels,  and  had  excited  the  envy  and  admir- 
ation of  civilized  mankind,  passed  away  in  a  moment  as 
the  baseless  fabric  of  a  dream.  They  were  the  authors 
of  their  own  disgrace.  Forgetful  of  their  vows,  un- 
worthy of  the  honors  and  burden  of  the  Cross,  divided 
among  themselves,  survivors  of  their  own  work,  fame, 
and  office,  they  fell  without  pity,  sympathy,  or  regret. 
Their  fall  set  a  seal  and  confirmation  to  the  truth,  that 
every  human  government  which  fails  in  the  purpose  for 
which  it  was  appointed,  carries  within  itself  the  ele- 
ments of  dissolution  and  decay.  The  Providence  which 
overrules  all  events  had  prepared  fit  successors  for  their 
greatness.  The  high  task  committed  through  so  many 
centuries  to  the  Knights  of  St.  John  has  been  trans- 
ferred to  a  people  who  now  discharge  in  another 
form,  for  the  good  of  mankind  and  for  the  benefit  of  all 
nations,  the  honorable  duties  of  the  former  "  Sea- 
Kings  of  the  Mediterranean." 


CHAPTER  XII. 
»"*"^' 

THE  SPANISH  ARMADA. 

A  FITTING  sequel  to  the  foregoing  naval  details  will 
be  an  account  of  the  contemplated  invasion  of  England 
by  the  Spanish  Armada,  which  took  place  in  1586. 
Though  the  scene  of  the  conflict  is  removed  from  the 
Mediterranean,  yet  the  interest  is  abundantly  sustained, 
and  an  important  event  in  English  and  Spanish  history 
is  brought  into  review  in  a  way  that  exhibits  at  the 
same  time  the  injustice  of  one  people,  the  skill  and 
prowess  of  another,  and  the  interposition  of  the  Provi- 
dence of  God. 

In  the  year  1586,  a  rumor  was  spread  abroad  that 
Philip,  the  king  of  Spain,  who,  thirty  years  before,  had 
been  the  husband  of  Queen  Mary  of  England,  was  de- 
termined to  go  over  to  England  and  take  possession  of 
it,  after  the  manner  of  the  Duke  of  Normandy,  some 
five  hundred  years  before. 

The  rumor  was  quite  true.  The  Spanish  king  was  a 
proud,  haughty  man,  and  he  had  been  very  much  of- 
fended with  Queen  Elizabeth,  because  she  would  not 

267 


268  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KING8. 

have  him  for  a  husband  when  his  former  wife  was 
dead.  Probably  he  had  no  love  for  Elizabeth ;  but  his 
selfish  admiration  for  the  country  over  which  she 
reigned  led  him  to  wish  to  have  it  for  his  own  kingdom. 
So,  as  ho  could  not  gain  what  he  desired  in  one  way,  he 
made  up  his  mind,  after  long  years  of  pondering  and 
planning,  to  obtain  it  in  another. 

Besides  this,  King  Philip  was  a  bigoted  Roman  Cath- 
olic, and  it  very  much  enraged  him  to  know  that  all  the 
trouble  and  pains  his  former  wife,  Queen  Mary,  had 
taken  to  bring  back  England  to  the  Pope,  had  been  so 
thrown  away  that  the  people  were  getting  more  and 
more  Protestant, —  that  the  Protestant  faith  had  be- 
come the  established  religion  of  the  land ;  that  the 
Bible  was  circulated  and  read ;  and  that  Roman  Catho- 
lic worship  was  not  tolerated,  or  could  be  practised 
only  in  private.  It  would  be  a  good  deed,  therefore, 
thought  Philip,  to  punish  the  people  of  England  for 
their  Protestantism,  and  to  bring  back  the  nation  to  the 
obedience  of  the  Pope  of  Rome  by  main  force.  If 
he  could  do  this,  and,  at  the  same  time,  indulge  his 
spite  against  Elizabeth  for  refusing  to  marry  him  when 
he  asked  hir, —  why,  so  much  the  better. 

There  might  have  been  other  causes  which  incited 
the  King  of  Spain  to  pounce  upon  England  with 
terrible  fury,  as  a  hawk  darts  on  a  sparrow,  or  a  cat  on 
a  mouse ;  but  these  were  among  the  principal  causes. 


THE  SPANISH  AKMADA.  269 

The  first  thing  he  did  was  to  get  together  a  great 
fleet  of  ships,  and  this  occupied  him  nearly  three  years, 
so  that  it  was  not  until  1588  that  the  attempt  was 
really  made.  In  all  that  time,  in  the  great  rivers 
and  harbors  of  Spain,  there  was  such  a  bustle  of  ship- 
lynkling  and.  rigging  and  fitting  out,  as  was  scarcely 
ever  before  known.  Certainly,  there  had  never  been 
seens,  by  any  one  then  living,  so  many  ships  together, 
and  of  so  large  a  size  as,  in  process  of  time,  were  made 
ready  for  the  invasion.  Altogether,  there  were  a  hun- 
dred and  thirty,  and  many  of  these  were  so  large 
that  they  looked  like  floating  castles.  On  board  this 
great  fleet  were  more  than  twenty  thousand  soldiers, 
besides  ten  thousand  sailors  and  galley-slaves.  And  to 
make  them  more  formidable,  they  carried  more  than  two 
thousand  brass  cannon,  which,  as  gunpowder  had  not 
very  long  been  invented  or  used  in  warfare,  were  ex- 
pected to  strike  the  poor  English  with  dismay. 

Besides  soldiers  and  sailors,  and  slaves,  there  were 
some  scores  and  perhaps  hundreds  of  priests  and  monks 
and  friars,  with  abundance  of  wooden  crosses,  and 
beads,  and  miracle-working  relics  of  dead  saints,  (ac- 
cording to  their  notions,)  with  which  they  intended  to 
convert  Englishmen  and  women  back  to  the  church  of 
Rome,  when  they  had  taken  possession  of  the  country. 

And  if  they  would  not  be  converted,  what  then? 

Why,  then,  there  was  wood  enough,  no  doubt,  left  in 


270  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

England,  after  the  martyr-fire  of  Queen  Mary's  reign, 
to  light  up  more  fires,  to  consume  the  obstinate  her- 
etics. That  this  is  what  the  monks  and  friars  and 
priests  would  have  done  if  they  had  obtained  the  power 
they  aimed  at,  there  is  no  doubt  at  all. 

The  Spaniards  were  so  proud  of  their  great  ships, 
that  when  they  were  ready  to  sail,  they  must  needs 
give  the  fleet  a  name ;  and  they  called  it  THE  INVINCI- 
BLE ARMADA  :  Armada  means  an  armed  force,  and  In- 
vincible implies  unconquerable,  Indeed,  they  were  so 
sure  of  conquering  England,  and  of  easily  destroying  all 
that  opposed  them,  that  a  large  number  of  the  grandees 
of  Spain, —  dukes  and  other  noblemen,  and  sons  of 
noble  families, —  accompanied  the  Armada,  making  sure 
of  getting  possession  of  some  of  the  fine  estates  of  the 
conquered  country. 

On  the  28th  of  May,  1588,  the  Armada  set  sail.  The 
plan  of  the  invasion  was  this : —  the  fleet  was  first  of  all 
to  proceed  to  Dunkirk,  a  seaport  of  Flanders  which  be- 
longed at  that  time  to  Spain,  where  it  was  to  be  joined 
by  nearly  thirty  thousand  more  Spanish  soldiers.  Then 
it  was  to  sail  across  the  sea  to  England,  enter  the  river 
Thames,  and  find  a  convenient  place  for  landing  the 
army,  which  was  to  march  straight  on  to  London,  doing 
all  the  mischief  it  could  on  its  way.  The  army,  having 
then  taken  possession  of  London,  was  to  make  a  speedy 
and  entire  conquest  of  the  whole  country.  This  seemed 


THE  SPANISH  AKMADA  271 

such  an  easy  scheme,  that  it  scarcely  entered  into  the 
mind  of  the  invaders  that  it  could  fail.  For  among 
them  were  men  who  could  tell  from  personal  experience 
how  helpless  was  a  commercial  country,  when  once  .in 
the  clutch  of  disciplined  troops, —  men  who  had,  in 
former  guilty  invasions  of  other  countries,  enriched 
themselves,  in  an  hour,  with  the  accumulations  of  a 
merchant's  life-time,  and  who  had  slain  fathers  and 
mothers,  sons  and  daughters,  brides  and  bridegrooms, 
before  each  other's  eyes,  until  the  number  of  inhabi- 
tants butchered  in  a  single  city  amounted  to  many 
thousands,  and  the  plunder  from  its  palaces  and  ware- 
houses was  counted  by  millions.  And  these  men 
looked  forward  with  greedy,  gloating,  tigerish  anticipa- 
tions, to  enacting  the  same  scenes  on  English  soil 
and  in  English  cities.  Already  they  had  looked  upon 
London,  especially,  as  given  to  them  as  a  prey.  It  was 
almost  before  their  eyes  —  a  huge  mass  of  treasure, 
richer  and  more  accessible  than  those  mines  beyond  the 
Atlantic  which  had  so  often  rewarded  Spanish  chivalry 
with  fabulous  wealth. 

The  preparations  of  Spain  were  not  made  so  secretly 
as  to  take  England  by  surprise.  All  the  time  the  Span- 
iards were  building  and  fitting  out  their  ships,  the  gov- 
ernment and  people  of  England  were  preparing  to  resist 
the  intended  invasion;  for  they  did  not  choose  to  be 
conquered  as  easily  as  their  enemies  thought.  The  first 


272  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

thing  was  to  ascertain  how  many  ships  they  had  to 
meet  the  Invincible  Armada.  There  were  only  thirty- 
six  of  all  sorts  in  the  Royal  Navy,  and  these  were 
mostly  small  vessels,  especially  when  compared  with  the 
monstrously  large  Spanish  ships.  This  looked  badly  for 
England  ;  what  could  such  a  small  number  do  against  so 
many  ?  The  people  were  not  frightened,  however  ;  for 
as  soon  as  it  was  known  how  badly  off  the  queen  was  for 
ships,  and  for  sailors  as  well,  English  nobles  and  English 
merchants,  and  all  classes  of  Englishmen  united  to- 
gether, and  collected  all  the  merchant  vessels  that  could 
be  obtained,  and  prepared  them  for  war;  while  hundreds 
of  men  came  forward  and  offered  to  serve  in  them.  Be- 
sides this,  the  people  of  Holland  sent  sixty-five  ships  of 
war  to  help  their  friends  and  fellow  Protestants  in 
England ;  so  that  before  the  invasion  commenced,  there 
were  altogether  about  a  hundred  and  ninety  vessels  of 
all  sorts  ready  for  the  defense  of  the  country.  The 
number  of  sailors  was  about  seventeen  thousand. 

As  soon  as  it  was  known  what  the  intentions  of  King 
Philip  were,  as  to  the  landing  of  his  troops,  and  their 
march  to  London,  the  government  had  both  sides  of  the 
Thames  protected.  "  Gravesend  was  strongly  fortified  ; 
and  a  vast  number  of  barges  were  collected  there  for  the 
double  purpose  of  serving  as  a  bridge  for  the  passage  of 
horse  and  foot  between  Kent  and  Essex,  and  for  block- 
ing up  the  river  against  the  invaders.  At  Tilbury  Fort, 


THE  SPANISH  ARMADA.  273 

directly  opposite  Gravesend,  a  great  camp  was  formed ; " 
and  it  was  a  pleasant  sight,  an  old  chronicler  tells  us, 
"  to  behold  the  soldiers  as  they  marched  towards  Til- 
bury,  their  cheerful  countenances,  courageous  words  and 
gestures,  dancing  and  leaping  wheresoever  they  came. 
AnoJvin  the  camp,  their  greatest  happiness  was  the  hope 
of  a  fight  with  the  enemy ;  where  of  ttimes  divers  rumors 
rose  of  their  foe's  approach,  and  that  present  battles 
would  be  given  them.  Then  were  they  joyful  at  such 
news,  as  if  lusty  giants  were  to  run  a  race." 

These  poor  fellows  had,  very  few  of  them,  probably, 
known  anything  of  real  fighting  in  battle,  or  they  would 
not  have  been  so  anxious  to  meet  the  enemy.  Yet  we 
cannot  blame  them  for  their  patriotism,  in  view  of  the 
wickedness  of  the  threatened  invasion  ;  and  the  suffer- 
ings and  horrible  cruelty  which  would  have  accompanied 
it,  if  it  had  taken  place  and  been  successful.  It  was 
honorable  to  the  English  that  there  were  such  numbers 
of  them  who  were  ready  and  willing  to  risk  their  lives  in 
defense  of  their  country,  their  liberties  and  their  reli- 
gious privileges. 

About  twenty  thousand  foot  soldiers  and  two  thou- 
sand horse  soldiers  were  collected  at  this  great  camp, 
besides  many  other  thousands  in  other  parts  of  the 
country,  so  that  the  King  of  Spain  had  not  so  easy  a  con- 
quest before  him  as  he  imagined. 

While  these  ardent  soldiers  were  waiting  at  Tilbury 
18 


274  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

for  the  enemy,  a  visit  was  paid  to  their  camp  which 
mightily  increased  their  enthusiasm.  The  visitor  was 
uo  other  than  Queen  Elizabeth  herself,  who  went  from 
London  to  Tilbury  to  review  her  army,  riding  on  a  fine 
war-horse,  and  wearing  armor  on  the  upper  part  of  her 
body,  like  a  man.  She  also  carried  the  staff  or  trun- 
cheon of  a  field-marshal,  or  principal  military  com- 
mander ;  and,  thus  arrayed,  she  made  the  following 
speech : 

"  We  have  been  persuaded  by  some  that  are  careful 
of  our  safety,"  she  said,  "to  take  heed  how  we  commit 
ourselves  to  armed  multitudes,  for  fear  of  treachery. 
But  I  assure  you,  I  do  not  desire  to  live  to  distrust  my 
faithful  and  loving  people.  Let  tyrants  fear  I  I  have 
always  so  behaved  myself  that,  under  God,  I  have 
placed  my  chiefest  strength  and  safeguard  in  the  loyal 
hearts  and  good-will  of  my  subjects ;  and,  therefore,  I 
am  come  amongst  you  at  this  time,  not  as  for  my 
recreations  and  sport,  but  being  resolved  in  the  midst 
and  heat  of  the  battle  to  live  or  die  amongst  you  all  — 
to  lay  down,  for  my  God,  for  my  kingdom,  and  my  peo- 
ple, my  honor  and  my  blood,  even  in  the  dust.  I  know 
that  I  have  but  the  body  of  a  weak  woman ;  but  I  have 
the  heart  of  a  king,  and  a  king  of  England,  too;  and 
think  foul  scorn  that  Parma  or  Spain,  or  any  prince  of 
Europe,  should  dare  to  invade  the  borders  of  my  realm. 
To  which,  rather  than  any  dishonor  should  grow  by  me, 


THE  SPANISH  ARMADA.  275 

I  myself  will  take  up  arms  —  I  myself  will  be  your  gen- 
eral—  the  judge  and  rewarder  of  every  one  of  your 
virtues  in  the  field.  I  know  already  by  your  forward- 
ness that  you  have  deserved  rewards  and  crowns,  and 
we  do  assure  you,  on  the  word  of  a  prince,  they  shall  be 
duly^paid  you." 

This  was  the  queen's  speech.  Rather  boastful,  per- 
haps, you  may  say  ;  bat  we  can  readily  make  allowances 
for  the  times.  And  though  we  now  know  that  Queen 
Elizabeth  was  an  arbitrary  lady  after  all,  and  a  tyrant  as 
well  as  a  queen,  she  did  not  seem  so  to  her  subjects  in 
those  days,  who,  when  they  compared  her  with  the 
queen  who  had  gone  before,  and  with  many  of  the  kings 
who  had  gone  before  them  both,  had  reason  to  be  proud 
of  her.  This  short  speech  of  hers  was  received  with  loud 
and  joyous  shouts  of  applause;  indeed,  we. may  readily 
understand  how  it  excited  the  enthusiasm  of  the  soldiers, 
—  making  every  one  of  them  feel  himself  a  citizen  of  a 
free  country,  as,  indeed,  free  it  was,  in  comparison  with 
that  country  which  was  now  threatening  to  subdue  and 
enslave  it. 

It  was  not  at  Tilbury  Fort  only  that  this  enthusiasm 
was  felt.  All  over  England  the  people  declared  plainly, 
by  their  actions  as  well  as  their  words,  that  they  would 
not  submit  tamely  to  a  foreign  yoke,  nor  give  up  the 
liberty  which  they  prized  so  highly.  Everywhere, 
men  who  had  never  before  handled  warlike  arms,  but 


276  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

had  desired  to  live  quiet  and  peaceable  lives,  prepared 
themselves  for  fighting.  And,  what  seems  strange, 
the  Roman  Catholics  of  England  were  not  behind  their 
Protestant  fellow-subjects  in  patriotism  and  active  zeal 
on  behalf  of  their  country.  King  Philip  of  Spain  had 
not  reckoned  upon  this.  He  fancied  that,  when  his 
troops  landed,  English  papists  would  join  them,  and 
help  in  overturning  the  Protestant  government  under 
which  they  lived  ;  but  he  was  mistaken. 

After  these  preparations  were  made,  the  people  of 
England  almost  impatiently  waited  the  coming  of  the 
Invincible  Armada.  Other  efforts  also  were  made, 
which  are  not  much  taken  into  account,  or  even  men- 
tioned in  the  histories  which  are  commonly  told  of  this 
eventful  time. 

There  were  in  England  at  that  time  (and  their 
number  has  been  greatly  increased  since  then)  many 
hundreds  and  thousands  of  pious,  godly  Christians, 
both  men  and  women,  who  had  been  taught  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  of  God  how  to  pray  and  what  to  pray  for. 
They  felt  deeply  that  the  sins  of  England  were  such 
as  might  justly  bring  down  upon  the  whole  nation  the 
Divine  displeasure ;  and  they  very  justly  thought  that 
this  threatened  invasion  might  be  one  of  those  punish- 
ments which  God  sometimes  sees  fit  to  inflict  on  those 
who  despise  His  warnings  and  milder  chastisements. 
But  they  had  faith  in  the  promises  of  God,  and  they 


THE  SPANISH  AEMADA.  277 

knew  where  it  is  written  for  the  encouragement  of  all 
believers,  "  Call  upon  me  in  in  the  day  of  trouble  ;  I 
will  deliver  thee,  and  thou  shalt  glorify  me."  So  these 
Christian  people  prayed  to  God  to  give  deliverance  to 
their  country  from  the  malice  and  cruel  designs  of  ita 
powerful  enemy.  And  while  others  trusted  in  English 
ships  and  arms  and  armor,  and  boasted  of  English 
courage,  they  remembered  the  name  of  the  Lord  their 
God,  and  rejoiced  in  the  thought  of  His  Almighty 
power. 

"  THE  INVINCIBLE  ARMADA  "  MAKES  ITS  APPEARANCE. 

Through  the  early  summer  of  1588,  all  England  was 
kept  in  a  state  of  suspense,  daily  expecting  to  hear 
tidings  of  the  Armada,  which  seemed  to  be  unaccount- 
ably delayed.  There  was  cause  for  this  delay,  how- 
ever. The  great  Spanish  fleet,  as  before  stated,  set 
sail  on  the  29th  of  May:  but  it  had  not  proceeded 
far  before  a  great  storm  arose,  and  scattered  the  ships. 
Four  of  them,  and  large  ones  too,  sank  to  the  bottom 
of  the  sea,  with  all  on  board ;  and  all  the  rest  were  so 
damaged  by  the  storm  that  they  had  to  put  back  into 
different  ports  to  be  repaired  and  refitted.  This  was 
the  first  check  the  invaders  experienced ;  and  when  it 
was  known  in  England,  it  gave  encouragement  to  those 
who  trusted  in  God,  to  believe  that  "  by  terrible  things 
in  righteousness,"  He  was  answering  their  earnest 


278  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

prayers,  and  to  pray  yet  more  earnestly,  if  possible, 
that  He  would  send  full  and  complete  deliverance  to 
the  threatened  land. 

It  would  have  been  well  if  the  proud  ting  of  Spain 
had  seriously  considered,  and  acted  upon  the  considera- 
tion, that  this  disappointment  was  an  indication  of 
God's  displeasure,  and  a  forerunner  of  greater  calami- 
ties unless  he  turned  from  his  unrighteous  course: 
that,  to  use  the  words  of  Scripture,  God  was  already 
whetting  His  sword  and  bending  His  bow,  and  making 
it  ready  against  the  persecutors.  But  no  such  thoughts 
entered  into  King  Philip's  mind.  On  the  contrary, 
he  seems  to  have  fancied  he  was  doing  God  service  in 
making  war  against  England,  and  in  preparing  to  exter- 
minate all  English  heretics.  At  any  rate,  the  storm 
which  had  dispersed  his  fleet,  only  made  him  the  more 
savage  and  determined ;  so  that,  as  soon  as  the  losses 
and  damages  had  been  repaired,  the  Invincible  Armada 
once  more  set  out  on  its  voyage. 

While  the  Armada  was  thus  delayed,  the  principal 
part  of  the  English  fleet  was  gathered  together  at 
Plymouth,  under  the  command  of  Lord  Howard,  its 
admiral.  The  vice-admiral,  or  second  in  command, 
was  Sir  Francis  Drake,  a  skillful  and  gallant  seaman, 
and  a  brave  Englishman.  Under  these  were  other 
experienced  leaders,  whose  names  are  now  remembered 
in  history  for  the  deeds  they  performed.  Among  them 


THE  SPANISH  ARMADA.  279 

were  John  Hawkins,  rear-admiral  of  the  fleet ;  Martin 
Frobisher,  an  excellent  navigator  and  discoverer,  who 
commanded  the  largest  of  the  queen's  ships,  the 
Triumph ;  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  who  was  a  great  favor- 
ite of  Queen  Elizabeth ;  with  many  others,  from  the 
most  noble  families  of  England. 

All  these,  with  the  captains  and  officers  and  seamen 
of  the  fleet,  were,  for  two  months  or  more,  fretting  at 
having  nothing  to  do,  and  wearying  themselves  at 
guessing  why  the  Invincible  Armada  did  not  make  its 
appearance  as  it  must  have  done  on  its  entrance  into 
the  English  seas.  To  pass  away  the  time,  the  English 
officers  indulged  in  various  recreations  on  shore. 
Among  these  was  the  game  of  bowls. 

One  day  in  July,  Admiral  Drake  and  other  officers 
were  on  a  bowling-green  near  to  Plymouth,  enjoying 
their  amusement,  when  a  man  burst  in  upon  them, 
almost  breathless  with  speed,  to  tell  them  that  the  Ar- 
mada was  at  last  really  come.  It  had  been  seen  by  the 
captain  of  a  small  vessel,  when  out  at  sea,  and  he  had 
hastened  to  Plymouth  to  tell  the  news.  This  captain's 
name  was  Fleming,  and  he  had  no  very  good  character ; 
for  he  was  a  privateer  by  profession,  which  is  but 
another  name  for  a  sea-robber.  There  was  no  reason  to 
suppose,  however,  that  he  had  given  a  false  report; 
and  orders  were  accordingly  sent  in  great  haste  to 
.all  the  ships  of  the  fleet  to  be  ready  to  leave  their 
moorings. 


280  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

"  There's  an  end  of  our  game,  then,"  said  one  of  the 
bowlers,  when  the  message  reached  those  on  the  green. 

"  No  such  thing,"  said  Admiral  Drake  ;  "  there  will 
be  plenty  of  time  for  us  to  finish  our  game,  and  to  beat 
the  Spaniards  afterwards." 

Accordingly,  the  game,  was  played  out;  and  then  the 
bowling  party  hastened  to  their  boats.  The  common 
sailors  who  were  on  shore  had  already  been  recalled  to 
their  duty ;  and  before  evening  the  English  fleet  was 
standing  out  to  sea,  waiting  the  approach  of  the  en- 
emy, who  was  not  yet  in  sight.  At  the  same  time  bea- 
con-fires were  kindled  up  all  along  the  coast ;  for 
among  other  precautions  against  being  taken  by  sur- 
prise, the  English  government  had  caused  great  piles  of 
wood  to  be  built  up  a  mile  or  two  distant  from  each 
other,  on  the  high  grounds  and  cliffs,  all  the  way  from 
the  Land's  End  in  Cornwall  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Thames;  and  other  parts  of  the  coast  as  well,  as  near 
as  possible  to  the  sea-shore.  Men  were  also  kept 
constantly  on  the  watch,  with  orders  that  when  the 
Spanish  fleet  should  be  seen,  the  nearest  beacon,  as 
these  piles  of  wood  were  called,  was  to  be  set  on 
fire.  This  would  soon  attract  the  attention  of  those 
•who  were  on  the  watch  at  the  next  beacon  on  either 
side ;  and  then  those  piles  also  were  to  be  fired  ;  and  so 
on  with  the  next  and  the  next.  And  thus  it  came 
to  pass  that  as  soon  as  the  Invincible  Armada  was 


First  sight  of  the  Spanish  Armanda.      p.  280. 


THE  SPANISH  ARMADA.  281 

known  to  bo  really  approaching,  these  fires  were  kin- 
dled, one  after  the  other,  till  before  many  hours  had 
passed  away,  the  whole  south  coast  seemed  to  be  girt 
round  with  a  blazing  girdle.  In  the  words  of  Macaulay, 

"From  Eddystone  to  Berwick  bounds;  from  Lynn  to  Milford  Bay, 
That  time  of  slumber  was  as  bright  and  busy  as  the  day; 
POT  swift  to  east,  and  swift  to  west,  the  ghastly  war-flame  spread, 
High  on  St.  Michael's  Mount  it  shone;  it  shone  on  Beachy  Head; 
Far  on  the  deep  the  Spaniard  saw,  along  each  southern  shore, 
Cape  beyond  cape,  in  endless  range,  those  twinkling  points  of  fire." 

More  effectual,  however,  than  beacon-fire  or  war-fleet, 
or  the  brave  hearts,  cool  heads  and  strong  hands  which 
commanded  and  manned  it,  were  the  fervent,  ardent 
pleadings  of  those  disciples  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
who  cast  their  cares  and  their  country's  peril  upon  God. 
They  felt  that  a  few  days,  and  even  hours,  might 
determine  whether  England  would  be  permitted  arid 
helped  to  hold  fast  the  Christian  liberty  for  which 
so  much  blood  had  been  shed,  and  so  many  persecutions 
endured;  or  whether  she  should  again  be  plunged  into 
the  darkness  and  slavery  of  popery.  No  wonder,  then, 
that  earnest  prayers  were  offered  for  deliverance,  and 
that  their  Queen's  throne  might  be  established  in  right- 
eousness, that  the  Lord  would  appear  in  their  behalf, 
for  His  own  name's  sake,  and  for  the  glory  and  the  ad- 
vancement of  Christ's  kingdom.  We  shall  soon  see 
how  these  prayers  were  answered. 

The  morning  dawned,  and  brought  with  it  a  sight 


282  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

which  might  well  have  smitten  many  a  heart  in  the 
English  fleet  with  dismay  and  terror.  It  was  a  misty, 
hazy  day ;  but  through  the  drizzling  rain  could  be 
discerned  the  enemy's  fleet,  numbering  a  hundred  and 
thirty-six  vessels,  of  which  ninety  were  large  men-of- 
war,  such  as  had  never  been  seen  by  the  greater 
number  of  Englishmen  who  had  set  themselves  for  the 
defense  of  their  country.  On  the  other  hand,  there 
were  but  sixty-seven  sail  of  the  English  fleet  to  meet 
them ;  and  scarcely  more  than  half  of  this  small  number 
were  war  ships,  the  rest  being  small  merchant  and  trad- 
ing vessels,  some  of  them  scarcely  larger  than  a  modern 
fishing-smack. 

"  It  was  a  solemn  moment,"  writes  the  historian. 
"  The  long  expected  Armada  presented  a  pompous, 
almost  a  theatrical  appearance.  The  ships  seemed 
arranged  for  a  pageant  in  honor  of  a  victory  already 
won.  Disposed  in  form  of  a  crescent,  the  horns  of 
which  were  seven  miles  asunder,  those  gilded,  towered, 
floating  castles,  with  their  goodly  standards  and  their 
martial  music,  moved  slowly  along  the  channel,  with  an 
air  of  indolent  pomp." 

The  little  English  fleet  waited  quietly  till  the  great 
Armada  had  passed ;  and  then,  seeing  that  the  enemy 
showed  no  intention  of  landing  on  that  pait  of  the 
coast,  but  steered  steadily  up  the  Channel, —  the  Eng- 
lish admiral  put  his  ships  in  motion,  and  followed  the 


THE  SPANISH   ARMADA.  283 

Spaniards  very  closely,  watching  for  an  opportunity  of 
attacking  any  of  the  lumbering  and  slow-sailing,  though 
formidable  vessels  of  the  Spanish  fleet.  That  opportu- 
nity soon  occurred  ;  for  soon  a  part  of  that  fleet  lagged 
astern;  and  then  the  attack  was  commenced  by  one 
Jonass  Bradbury,  who  commanded  a  small  English 
barque  or  pinnace,  who  poured  a  broadside  of  shot 
into  one  of  the  hindmost.  Then  a  sort  of  running  sea- 
fight  commenced,  which  I  cannot  better  describe  than 
in  the  words  of  one  of  the  many  historians  who  have 
written  about  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth. 

"  Captain  Bradbury  having  begun  the  fray,  Admiral 
Lord  Howard,  in  his  own  ship,  the  Ark  Royal,  engaged 
a  great  Spanish  galleon ;  and  Drake,  in  the  Revenge, 
Hawkins,  in  the  Victory,  and  Frobisher,  in  the  the  Tri- 
umph, ranging  up  gallantly,  brought  into  action  all  the 
galleons  which  had  fallen  astern.  The  Spanish  rear- 
admiral,  who  was  with  this  division,  fought  it  bravely: 
but  his  lumbering  ships  lay  like  logs  on  the  water,  in 
comparison  with  the  lighter  vessels  of  England,  which 
were  manageable  and  in  hand,  like  well-trained  steeds. 
Before  any  assistance  could  come  from  the  van  (or  for- 
ward part)  of  the  Armada,  one  of  the  great  Spaniards 
was  completely  crippled;  and  another, —  a  treasure- 
ship,  with  55,000  ducats  in  her  chests, —  was  taken  by 
Drake,  who  distributed  the  money  among  the  sailors. 
After  this,  the  Duke  of  Medina  (the  Spanish  Admiral) 


284  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

waited  till  the  slower  ships  came  up,  and  then,  all 
of  them,  under  press  of  sail,  stood  further  up  the  Chan- 
nel. 

"  This  first  brush,"  we  are  told,  "  gave  great  spirit 
to  the  English,  and  there  were  in  it  several  encouraging 
circumstances.  It  was  seen,  for  example,  that  the  tall 
Spanish  ships  could  not  bring  their  ordnance  (guns)  to 
bear, —  firing,  for  the  greater  part,  over  the  English 
without  touching  them ;  and  that  the  surer  fire  of  the 
latter  told,  with  terrible  effect,  on  those  huge  ships, 
crammed  with  men, —  soldiers  and  sailors." 

After  this  day's  fighting,  the  English  admiral  re- 
turned to  Plymouth,  where  his  fleet  was  joined  by  forty 
more  vessels.  In  the  course  of  this  night,  one  of  the 
greatest  of  the  Spanish  ships  took  fire,  and  was  burned. 
It  was  said  that  it  was  purposely  set  fire  to  by  a 
traitor, —  a  certain  Flemish  gunner,  who  was  in  the  ser- 
vice of  the  Spaniards.  Besides  this  trouble,  some  of  the 
Spanish  ships  ran  foul  of  each  other,  to  their  great  mis- 
chief: for  it  was  a  dark  night,  and  there  was  a  rough 
sea. 

This  first  day's  fighting  was  on  the  22nd  of  July. 
We  continue  the  account  of  the  next  several  days  in 
the  words  of  the  historian,  before  quoted. 

"  On  the  23rd  of  July,  Lord  Howard,  who  was  rein- 
forced, and  was  joined  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  came  up 
with  the  whole  Armada  off  Portland,  when  a  battle  be- 


THE  SPANISH  ARMADA.  285 

gan,  which  lasted  nearly  the  whole  of  that  day.  The 
English  fought  loose  and  at  large,  avoiding  a  close  com- 
bat, or  boarding.  They  kept  separate,  but  always  in  mo- 
tion, tacking  and  playing  about  the  enemy,  pouring  in, 
their  fire,  and  then  sheering  out  of  range,  returning 
befor,Q  the  Spaniards  had  time  to  reload,  giving  them 
another  broadside,  and  then  off,  as  before.  .  .  .  The 
darkness  of  night  interrupted  the  battle ;  but  in  the 
course  of  the  day  the  English  had  taken  a  large  argosy 
(or  merchant  ship)  and  several  transports  (or  vessels 
containing  supplies  of  men  and  food  and  ammunition). 

"  Next  day  the  Spaniards  showed  small  inclination  to 
renew  the  fight,  and  it  was  apparent  that  they  wished 
to  hold  on  to  Dunkirk,—  the  place  appointed  for  their 
being  joined  by  the  Spanish  army  there.  The  English 
on  their  side,  were  not  in  fighting  condition,  for  they 
had  been  but  poorly  supplied  with  gunpowder ;  and  by 
this  time  they  had  used  all  they  had  on  board.  How- 
ard, however,  sent  off  some  barques  and  pinnaces, 
which  returned  with  a  supply  towards  night ;  but  a  day 
had  been  lost. 

"On  the  morning  of  the  26th,  the  English  admiral 
once  more  came  up  with  part  of  the  Armada,  off  the 
Isle  of  Wight,  where  Captain  Hawkins  took  a  large 
Portuguese  galleon.  Presently  there  came  a  calm  ;  the 
great  ships  of  Spain  lay  motionless  upon  the  water,  and 
were  much  too  heavy  to  be  towed ;  while  the  English 


286  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

craft,  of  the  lighter  kind,  were  easily  towed  by  their 
long  boats.  When  a  breeze  sprang  up,  Frobisher  was 
set  upon  by  several  galleons,  and  was  in  great  peril ; 
but  the  White  Bear  and  the  Elizabeth  Jonas,  two  Eng- 
lish ships,  came  up  to  his  relief.  Other  ships  ranged  up 
on  either  side,  and  the  battle  seemed  becoming  general; 
but  the  English  had  again  burnt  all  their  powder.  So, 
having  shot  away  the  mainmast,  and  otherwise  shat- 
tered the  Dnke  of  Medina's  own  ship,  they  took  advan- 
tage of  the  wind,  and  sheered  off." 

Perhaps  I  have  now  given  the  reader  enough  of  fight- 
ing. If  I  were  to  continue  every  day's  history  of  the 
Armada  to  the  end  of  that  notable  July  in  1588,  it 
would  be  but  a  repetition  of  the  same,  with  one 
addition,  however;  namely,  that  on  one  of  these  days, 
the  English  smeared  over  with  pitch  and  rosin,  and 
filled  with  quick-burning  stuff,  eight  small  ships,  and, 
setting  them  on  fire,  sent  them  into  the  midst  of  the 
Spanish  fleet.  The  effect  of  this  manoeuvre  was  prodig- 
ious. The  Spaniards  cut  their  cables,  or  let  slip  their 
hawsers,  we  are  told,  "  and  in  haste,  fear,  and  confu- 
sion," scattered  themselves  abroad, —  some  into  the 
wide  sea,  and  some  among  the  shoals  of  Flanders. 
After  this,  ship  after  ship  of  the  Invincible  Armada, 
was  taken  by  the  English,  who  had  been  so  despised  ; 
and.  others  were  wrecked,  so  that,  though  some  of  the 
invaders  cried  out  for  revenge,  and  desired  to  go  ou 


THE  SPANISH  ARMADA.  287 

with  their  work,  their  leader  resolved  to  make  his  way 
back  to  Spain  in  the  best  manner  he  could.  "And 
as  it  was  held  dangerous "  to  turn  back  and  meet 
the  English  in  those  narrow  seas  which  had  already 
brought  the  Spaniards  so  much  damage,  "  he  resolved 
to  go^northward,  and  return  to  Spain  by  sailing  round 
Scotland." 

From  what  has  been  recounted  of  this  threatened  in- 
vasion, it  appears  that  the  English,  though  they  were 
inferior  in  ships  and  ammunition,  and  in  almost  every- 
thing else  likely  to  insure  success,  nevertheless  a.cted 
manfully  and  bravely  in  defence  of  their  country. 

Of  all  the  famous  battles,  or  succession  of  battles,  on 
land  or  on  sea,  which  cause  the  national  history  of  Eng- 
land to  be  written,  as  it  were,  in  letters  of  blood,  none 
.perhaps  were  so  unexceptionally  righteous  on  the 
part  of  the  victors,  as  those  which  issued  in  the  defeat 
of  the  Spanish  Armada.  The  people  were  then  com- 
pelled to  fight  for  the  gospel  and  the  sanctuary;  for  all 
they  held  dear  to  them  in  their  country  and  their 
homes. 

How  they  fought  I  have  partly  told.  How  God 
fought  for  them  I  have  yet  to  tell. 

The  leaders  of  the  Armada, — no  longer  the  Invin- 
cible,— instead  of  sailing  up  the  Thames,  and  landing 
their  troops,  and  marching  to  London  in  triumph,  as 
they  had  hoped  to  do,  were  now  only  too  glad  to  escape 


288  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

(if  they  could)  from  the  enemy  they  had  despised.  So 
they  struggled  on  and  on,  keeping  as  clear  as  they 
could  of  the  English  coast,  which  they  had  come  to 
invade,  until  on  the  12th  of  August,  their  fleet  was 
as  far  north  as  the  Orkney  Islands.  They  had  been 
followed  so  far  by  the  English  ships  ;  but  this  fleet  was 
now  obliged  to  return  for  want  of  provisions  and  water, 
as  well  as  powder  and  shot.  So  they  put  back  into  the 
Frith  of  Forth.  Up  to  this  period  the  weather,  though 
occasionally  threatening,  had  been  moderate,  but  on  the 
14th  of  August  there  was  a  change.  The  wind  shifted; 
and  during  the  whole  of  that  day,  and  the  next,  it  blew 
a  tremendous  gale.  It  was  a  more  violent  storm 
than  was  ever  seen  before  at  this  time  of  year.  The 
English  fleet  was  scattered,  and  many  ships  were  in 
peril ;  but  within  four  or  five  days  all  arrived  safely  in 
port. 

"  Far  different,"  our  historian  tells  us,  "  was  the  fate 
of  the  Spaniards.  Over  this  invincible  Armada,  last 
seen  by  the  departing  English,  midway  between  the 
coasts  of  Scotland  and  Denmark,  the  blackness  of  night 
seemed  suddenly  to  descend.  A  mystery  for  a  long 
time  hung,  over  their  fate.  Damaged,  leaking,  without 
pilots,  without  a  competent  commander,  the  great  fleet 
entered  that  furious  storm,  and  was  whirled  along 
the  iron  crags  of  Norway,  and  between  the  savage 
rocks  of  Faroe  and  the  Hebrides.  In  those  regions 


THE  SPANISH  ARMADA.  289 

of  tempest,  the  insulted  North  wreaked  its  full  ven- 
geance on  the  insolent  Spaniards.  Disaster  after  disaster 
marked  their  perilous  track;  gale  after  gale  swept  them 
hither  and  thither,  tossing  them  on  sandbanks,  or  shat- 
tering them  against  granite  cliffs.  The  coasts  of  Nor- 
way, Scotland  and  Ireland,  were  strewn  with  the 
wrecks  of  that  pompous  fleet  which  claimed  the  domin- 
ion of  the  seas, —  with  the  bones  of  those  invincible 
legions  which  were  to  have  sacked  London,  and  made 
England  a  Spanish  vice-royalty." 

Another  historian  writes  that  in  their  dreadful  straits, 
the  storm-beaten  Spaniards  "threw  overboard  horses, 
mules,  artillery,  and  baggage.  Some  of  the  ships  were 
dashed  to  pieces  among  the  Orkneys  and  the  Western 
Isles,  some  were  stranded  in  Norway,  some  went  down 
at  sea  with  every  soul  on  board,  some  were  cast  upon 
the  iron  coast  of  Argyle,  and  more  than  thirty  were 
driven  on  the  coast  of  Ireland,  where  the  popular  name 
of  Port-na-Spagna,  bestowed  on  a  place  near  the 
Giant's  Causeway,  recalls  a  part  of  the  fearful  catas- 
trophe  A  small  squadron  was  driven  back  to 

the  English  Channel  where,  with  the  exception  of  one 
great  ship,  it  was  taken  by  the  English,  or  by  their 
allies,  the  Dutch.  The  Duke  of  Medina,  about  the  end 
of  September,  arrived  at  Santandor,  in  the  Bay  of  Bis- 
cay, with  no  more  than  sixty  sail  out  of  the  whole  fleet; 
and  these  very  much  shattered,  with  their  crews  all 
19 


290  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

worn  out  with  cold,  and  hunger,  and  sickness,  and  look- 
ing like  spectres." 

This,  then,  is  the  Great  Deliverance  of  which  this 
Btory  was  to  tell ;  and  it  surely  deserves  its  name,  for  it 
was  God  who  wrought  it.  So,  at  any  rate,  thought  all 
English  people  at  that  time;  and  so  great  was  their 
sense  of  God's  help  that  a  medal'was  struck  by  order 
of  the  government,  bearing  on  one  side  the  impression 
of  a  tempest-beaten  fleet ;  and  on  the  other  these  Latin 

words, 

"  AFFLAVIT  DEUS,  ET  DISSIPANTUB;" 

which,  in  English,  is, — 

"  God  caused  the  winds  to  blow,  and  they  were  scattered." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

p 

CHIVALRY. 

The  Age  of  Chivalry,  says  a  writer  in  the  Encyclopae- 
dia, is  the  heroic  age  of  the  Teutonic  Christian  tribes, 
corresponding  to  the  age  of  the  Grecian  heroes. 

This  heroic  period  of  a  nation  may  be  compared  to  the 
youth  of  an  individual;  and  we  find,  therefore,  nations 
in  this  stage  of  their  progress,  distinguished  by  the  vir- 
tues, follies,  and  even  vices,  to  which  the  youth  of  indi- 
viduals is  most  prone  —  thirst  for  glory,  enthusiasm, 
pride,  indescribable  and  indefinite  aspirations  after 
something  beyond  the  realities  of  life,  strong  faith  in 
virtue  and  intellectual  -greatness,  together  with  much 
vanity  and  credulity. 

Chivalry,  in  the  perfection  of  its  glory  and  its  extrav- 
agance, existed  only  among  the  German  tribes,  or  those 
which  were  conquered  by  and  mingled  with  them,  and 
whose  institutions  and  civilization  were  impregnated 
with  the  Teutonic  spirit.  Therefore  we  find  chivalry 
never  fully  developed  in  Italy,  because  the  Teutonic 
spirit  never  penetrated  all  the  institutions  of  that  coun- 

291 


292  KNIGHTS   AND  SEA-KINGS. 

try,  as  it  found  a  civilization  already  established,  of  too 
settled  a  character  to  be  materially  affected  by  its  influ- 
ence. 

Wa  do  not  find  much  of  the  chivalric  spirit  in  Greece, 
nor  among  the  Sclavonic  tribes,  except  some  traces 
among  the  Bohemians  and  the  Poles,  who  had  caught  a 
portion  of  it  from  the  Germans.  Among  the  Swedes, 
though  a  genuine  Teutonic,  chivalry  never  struck  deep 
root;  but  this  is  to  be  ascribed  to  their  remote  situa- 
tion, and  to  the  circumstance  that  they  early  directed 
their  attention  to  navigation  and  naval  warfare,  which, 
in  many  ways,  were  unfavorable  to  the  growth  of  the 
chivalric  spirit;  affording,  for  instance,  comparatively 
little  opportunity  for  that  display  of  courage  and  accom- 
plishment in  the  eyes  of  admiring  multitudes,  or  in  the 
adventurous  quests  of  the  single  knight,  which  formed 
so  striking  a  feature  of  the  chivalric  age. 

To  explain  the  nature  and  origin  of  chivalry,  we 
must  consider  the  character  of  the  ancient  German 
tribes.  The  warlike  spirit  was  common  to  them  with 
other  barbarous  nations ;  but  there  were  certain  traits 
in  their  character  peculiarly  their  own.  Among  these 
was  their  esteem  for  women.  This  is  dwelt  upon  by 
Tacitus,  and  is  sufficiently  apparent  from  the  early 
native  German  historians. 

This  regard  for  the  female  sex  was  diffused  by  them 
through  every  country  into  which  they  spread,  though 


CHIVALRY.  293 

with  considerable  difference  in  the  forms  in  which  it 
developed  itself.  In  France,  it  became  that  refined  gal- 
lantry for  which  the  nation  has  been  so  long  conspic- 
uous ;  in  Spain,  it  assumed  a  more  romantic  and 
glowing  character,  displaying  much  of  the  ~~fire  of 
Oriental  feeling;  in  Germany  itself,  it  became  faithful 
and  tender  attachment  to  the  wedded  wife.  Un- 
doubtedly the  Christian  religion  assisted  in  developing 
this  feeling  of  esteem  for  the  female  sex  in  those  times, 
particularly  by  the  adoration  of  the  Virgin,  which  was 
taught  as  a  part  of  it.  It  is  true  that  wives  and 
mothers  were  treated  with  great  regard  by  the  Romans, 
and  the  history  of  no  nation  affords  more  numerous 
instances  of  female  nobleness,  bat  this  esteem  was  ren- 
dered to  them,  not  as  females,  but  as  the  faithful  com- 
panions and  patriotic  mothers  of  citizens.  It  had 
somewhat  of  a  political  cast.  But  this  was  not  the  case 
with  the  Germans. 

There  is  another  trait  of  the  German  character, 
which  deserves  to  be  considered  in  this  connection, 
which  is  very  apparent  in  their  literature,  and  the  lives 
of  many  individuals;  we  mean  that  indefinite  thirst  for 
something  superior  to  the  realities  of  life,  that  sehnen,  to 
use  their  own  word,  which  hardly  admits  of  translation, 
which  has  produced  among  them  at  the  same  time  so 
much  excellence  and  so  much  extravagance.  These 
three  traits  of  the  Teutonic  race,  their  warlike  spirit, 


294  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

their  esteem  for  women,  and  their  indefinable  thirst  for 
superhuman  greatness,  together  with  the  influence  of 
the  feudal  system  and  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion, 
afford  an  explanation  of  the  spirit  of  chivalry  —  an 
institution  which,  to  many  observers,  Appears  like  an 
isolated  point  in  history,  and  leaves  them  in  doubt 
whether  to  despise  it  as  foolish,  or  admire  it  as  sublime. 

The  feudal  system  divided  the  Christian  Teutonic 
tribes  into  masses,  the  members  of  which  were  united, 
indeed,  by  some  political  ties,  but  had  little  of  that  inti- 
mate connection  which  bound  men  together  in  the  com- 
munities of  antiquity,  and  has  produced  like  effects  in 
our  own  and  a  few  preceding  ages.  They  still  pre- 
served, in  a  great  measure,  the  independence  of 
barbarians. 

There  was,  however,  one  strong  bond  of  union,  which 
gave  consistency  to  the  whole  aggregate;  we  mean  the 
Roman  Catholic  religion,  which  has  lost  much  of  its 
connecting  power,  in  proportion  as  other  ties,  chiefly 
those  of  a  common  civilization,  have  gained  strength. 
The  influence  of  this  religion  was  of  great  service  to 
mankind  during  the  ages  of  ignorance  and  violence,  by 
giving  coherency  to  the  links  of  the  social  chain,  which 
were  continually  in  danger  of  parting.  To  this  cause  is 
to  be  ascribed  the  great  uniformity  of  character  which 
prevailed  during  the  ages  of  chivalry. 

The  feudal  system,  besides,  enabled   the  gentry   to 


CHIVALRY.  295 

live  on  the  labors  of  the  oppressed  peasants,  without  the 
necessity  of  providing  for  their  own  support,  and  to  in- 
dulge the  love  of  adventures  incident  to  their  warlike 
and  ambitious  character. 

If  we  now  combine  the  characteristics  which  we  have 
been  considering — a  warlike  spirit,  a  lofty  devotion  to  the 
female  sex,  an  undefinable  thirst  for  glory,  connected 
with  feudal  independence,  elevation  above  the  drudgery 
of  daily  toil,  and  a  uniformity  of  character  and  purpose, 
inspired  by  the  influence  of  a  common  religion  —  we 
obtain  a  tolerable  view  of  the  chivalric  character. 

This  character  had  not  yet  quite  developed  itself  in 
the  age  of  Charlemagne.  The  courage  exhibited  by 
the  warriors  of  his  age  was  rather  the  courage  of 
individuals  in  bodies. 

The  independence,  the  individuality  of  character, 
which  distinguished  the  errant  knight  who  sought  far 
and  wide  for  adventures  to  be  achieved  by  his  single 
arm,  was  the  growth  of  a  later  period. 

The  use  of  the  war-horse,  which  formed  so  essential 
an  instrument  of  the  son  of  chivalry,  was  not  com- 
mon among  the  Germans  until  the  time  of  their  wars 
with  the  Hurs.  They  were  indeed  acquainted  with 
it  before,  and  Tacitus  mentions  it  in  his  account  of  Ger- 
many ;  but  it  was  not  in  common  use  among  them 
till  the  period  we  have  mentioned. 


296  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

After  it  was  introduced,  cavalry  was  considered 
among  them,  as  among  all  nations  in  the  early  stages  of 
their  progress,  much  superior  to  infantry,  which  was,  in 
fact,  despised,  until  the  successors  of  the  Swiss  demon- 
strated its  superiority.  In  the  llth  century,  knight- 
hood had  become  an  established  and  well-defined 
institution;  but  it  was  not  till  the  14th  that  its  honors 
were  confined  exclusively  to  the  nobility. 

The  crusades  gave  a  more  religious  turn  to  the  spirit 
of  chivalry,  and  made  the  knights  of  all  Christian 
nations  known  to  each  other,  so  that  a  great  uniformity 
is  thenceforward  to  be  perceived  among  them  through- 
out Europe.  Then  arose  the  religions  of  knights, 
the  knights  of  St.  John,  the  templars,  the  Teutonic 
knights,  &c.  The  whole  establishment  of  knighthood 
assumed  continually  a  more  formal  character,  and  de- 
generating, like  every  human  institution,  sunk  at  last 
into  Quixotic  extravagances,  or  frittered  away  its  spirit 
amid  the  forms  and  punctilios  springing  from  the  pride 
and  the  distinctions  of  the  privileged  orders  of  society. 
It  merged,  in  fact,  among  the  abuses  which  it  has  been 
one  of  the  great  labors  of  our  age  to  overthrow.  The 
decline  of  chivalry  might  be  traced  through  the  dif- 
ferent forms  which  it  assumed  in  different  nations  as 
distinctly  as  its  development  —  a  task  too  extensive  for 
this  work. 


CHIVALRY.  297 


MAKING  A  KNIGHT. 

The  education  of  a  knight  was  briefly  as  follows  :• 
The  young  and  noble  stripling,  generally  about  his  12th 
year,  was  sent  to  the  court  of  some  baron    or   noble 
knight,  where  he  spent  his  time  chiefly  in  attending  on   ' 
the  ladies,  and  acquiring  skill  in  the  use  of  arms,  in  rid- 
ing, &c.     This  duty  of  waiting  about  the  persons  of  the 
ladies  became,  in  the  sequel,  as  injurious  to  the  morals 

of  the   page  as  it  may  have  been  salutary  in  the  be- 

•*-'* 
ginning. 

When  advancing  age  and  experience  in  the  use  of  ;, 
arms  had   qualified  the  page  for  war,  he  became    artq* 
escuyer   (esquire  or  squire).     This   word  is  generally 
supposed  to  be  derived  from  escu  or   scudo   (shield), 
because,  among  other  offices,  it  was  the  squire's  busi- 
ness to  carry  the  shield  of  the  knight  whom  he  served. 

The  third  and  highest  rank  of  chivalry  was  that 
of  knighthood,  which  was  not  conferred  before  the  21st 
year,  except  in  the  case  of  distinguished  birth  or  great 
achievements.  The  individual  prepared  himself  by 
confessing,  fasting,  &c. ;  religious  rites  were  performed  ; 
and  then,  after  promising  to  be  faithful,  to  protect 
ladies  and  orphans,  never  to  lie,  nor  utter  slander, 
to  live  in  harmony  with  his  equals,  &c.,  (in  France 
there  were  twenty  vows  of  knighthood)  he  received  the 
accolade,  a  slight  blow  on  the  neck  with  the  flat  of  the 


298  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

sword,  from  the  person  who  dubbed  him  knight,  who, 
at  the  same  time,  pronounced  a  formula  to  this  effect: 
"I  dub  thee  knight,  in  the  name  of  God  and  St. 
Michael,  (or  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy 
Ghost).  Be  faithful,  bold,  and  fortunate."  This  was 
often  done  on  the  eve  of  battle,  to  stimulate  the  new 
knight  to  deeds  of  valor,  or,  after  the  combat,  to  reward 
signal  bravery. 

Chivalry  exercised,  in  some  respects,  a  salutary  influ- 
ence at  a  time  when  governments  were  unsettled  and 
laws  little  regarded.     Though  chivalry  often  carried  the 
""feelings  of  love   and  honor  to  a  fan.-itical   excess,  yet 
Tt  did  much  good  by  elevating  them  to  the   rank   of 
deities;    for  the  reverence  paid  to  them  principally  pre- 
vented mankind,  at  this  period  of  barbarous  violence, 
from    relapsing   into    barbarism ;    and,   as    the    feudal 
system  was  unavoidable,  it  is  well  that  its  evils  were 
somewhat  alleviated  by  the  spirit  of  chivalry. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

* 

THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM. 

THE  transition  from  the  rude  and  barbarous  state 
of  the  northern  nations,  when  their  waves  dashed  against 
the  corrupt  but  luxurious  civilization  of  the  Roman 
power  in  its  decline,  developed  the  feudal  system, 
which  belongs  to  the  period  of  the  middle  ages,  and 
traces  of  which  still  linger  in  many  parts  of  Europe. 

A  fee,  feud  or  fief  is  a  possession,  of  which  the  vassal 
receives  the  right  of  use  and  enjoyment,  of  disposition 
and  alienation,  on  condition  of  fidelity  (that  is,  of  af- 
fording assistance  or  counsel,  and  avoiding  all  injurious 
acts),  together  with  the  performance  of  certain  services 
incident  to  the  tenure,  while  the  feudal  lord  still  retains 
a  paramount  right. 

The  nature  of  feudal  property  is  explained  by  its 
origin.  Such  was  the  passion  of  the  ancient  Germans 
for  war,  that,  in  time  of  peace,  private  feuds  took  the 
place  of  public  contention  ;  and,  in  default  of  these,  the 
men  of  military  ages  spent  weeks,  and  months,  and 
years,  in  adventures,  and  made  incursions  into  the  terri- 

299 


300  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

tory  of  the  neighboring  tribes,  or  took  part  in  the 
quarrels  of  the  distant  ones.  On  these  expeditions  the 
experienced  and  powerful  were  usually  attended  by  a 
number  of  equally  valiant  youths,  who  were  furnished 
by  the  chief -with  provisions,  and,  perhaps,  with  arras, 
and  composed  his  retinue,  or  following. 

This  retinue,  which  was  well  known  in  the  time 
of  Csesar  and  Tacitus,  was  bound  to  the  commander  by 
firmer  ties  than  the  transient  love  of  war  or  in  constant 
success.  If  the  leader  did  not  prove  false  (which  was 
never  known),  the  attendant  devoted-  his  whole  life  to 
his  service,  and  was  always  ready  to  meet  the  summons 
to  new  adventures.  And  when  the  whole  nation 
marched  to  war,  the  warriors  formed  about  their  chief- 
tain a  devoted  band,  ready  to  sacrifice  themselves  for 
his  safety.  Each  of  them  looked  upon  the  life  and 
liberty  of  his  leader  as  intrusted  to  his  own  peculiar 
care ;  and,  if  any  one  survived  his  imprisonment  or 
death,  he  was  forever  branded  as  a  coward.  The 
general  of  the  national  militia,  always  one  of  the 
wealthiest  landholders,  had  a  crowd  of  them  constantly 
about  his  person.  These  companions  (in  German, 
Gresellen,  whence  the  later  barbarous  Latin  word 
vasallus)  received  no  pay  except  their  arms,  horses  and 
provisions,  and  the  portion  of  the  spoils  which  remained 
after  the  chieftain  had  taken  his  own  share.  In  the  ex- 
peditions of  particular  adventurers  against  the  adjacent 


THE   FEUDAL  SYSTEM.  301 

tribes,  or  the  Roman  provinces,  their  booty  consisted  of 
garments,  arras,  furniture  and  slaves.  But  when  the 
northern  hordes  broke  into  the  south,  and,  in  the  parti- 
tion of  the  conquered  lands,  large  districts  fell  into  the 
hands  of  kings  or  dukes  and  their  subordinates,  they 
gave  certain  portions  of  the  territory  to  their  attendants, 
to  enjoy  the  possession  for  life.  These  estates  they 
called  beneficia,  or  fiefs,  because  they  were  only 
lent  to  their  possessors  to  revert  after  their  death 
to  the  grantor,  who  immediately  gave  them  to  another 
of  his  servants.  From  this  custom  of  the  ancient  Ger- 
mans arose  the  feudal  service,  which  is  purely  German 
and  unknown  to  other  nations.  As  the  son  commonly 
esteemed  it  his  duty  or  was  forced  by  necessity,  to 
devote  his  arm  to  the  lord  in  whose  service  his  father 
had  lived,  he  also  received  his  father's  fief;  or  rather, 
he  was  invested  with  it  anew. 

By  the  usage  of  centuries  this  custom  became  a  right, 
and  to  deprive  one  of  his  paternal  fief,  though  it  was 
prohibited  by  no  law,  seemed  an  act  of  injustice.  At 
length,  express  provision  was  made  by  Conrad  II  ,  in 
Germany,  in  the  year  1025,  and  in  Italy  in  1037,  by 
which  the  feudal  possessions  of  a  father  were  to  de- 
scend to  his  son  ;  or  those  of  clergymen  to  their  suc- 
cessors. Female  fiefs  are  later  deviations  from  the 
system.  In  that  period  of  lawless  violence,  which 
followed  the  migration  of  nations,  and  the  death  of 


302  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

Charlemagne,  it  soon  appeared  useful  and  indispensable 
that  those  States  which  were  well  protected  from 
foreign  invasion,  though  they  had  no  assurance  of  inter- 
nal security,  should  put  themselves  under  the  protection 
of  a  powerful  governor. 

Powerful  barons  and  rich  bishops  on  one  side,  dukes 
and  counts,  the  representatives  of  the  kings,  on  the 
other,  oppressed  the  neighboring  free  proprietors  of 
landed  property,  till  they  looked  with  jealousy  on  the 
dependent  vassals,  and  submitted  to  the  protection  of 
the  oppressor,  or  some  other  nobleman,  in  order  to 
obtain  security.  Many  persons,  especially  the  poor, 
who  were  obliged  to  cultivate  their  land  themselves, 
and  could  not  have  it  without  much  inconvenience,  sub- 
mitted to  this  protection,  though  they  were  in  no  dan- 
ger of  oppression,  merely  to  escape  the  military  service. 
For  dukes,  and  counts,  and  the  bailiffs  (who  acted  on 
behalf  of  the  bishops),  whose  duty  it  was  to  levy  and 
command  the  army,  instead  of  employing  the  raw 
militia,  who  often  forgot  their  military  skill  in  long-con- 
tinued peace,  preferred  their  own  attendants,  now  styled 
the  vassals,  and  released  such  of  the  King's  subjects  as 
were  willing  to  become  their  vassals,  and  pay  a  certain 
contribution,  from  the  obligation  of  serving  in  the  na- 
tional militia.  The  emperors  and  kings  cared  little 
from  what  source  the  dukes  obtained  their  forces,  pro- 
vided the  number  was  complete. 


THE   FEUDAL  SYSTEM.  308 

Besides  the  advantages  just  mentioned,  they  even 
preferred  an  aimy  of  vassals  to  the  national  soldiery, 
because  the  latter  were  bound  only  to  serve  in  the 
defense  of  the  country,  while  the  former  were  bound  to 
a  much  less  limited,  sometimes  unconditional  service, 
and  were  hence  far  more  useful.  Thus  the  national 
milifia  gradually  went  out  of  use,  and  gave  place  to  the 
feudal  militia.  x 

Another,  and  not  a  small  class  of  men,  including  the 
wealthy  families,  afterwards  called  the  inferior  nobility,- 
who  cultivated  their  land  by  means  of  hirelings  or 
bondsmen,  were  not  anxious  to  free  themselves  from 
the  military  service ;  for  war  was  always  their  favorite 
employment.  But  they  could  not  dispense  with  the 
protection  of  the  nobles ;  on  the  other  hand,  their  pride 
could  not  stoop  to  serve  in  an  army  which  was  every 
day  sinking  into  disgrace.  They  longed  for  the  honor 
of  being  received  among  the  vassals  of  the  nobility,  and 
consented  to  hold  their  estates  as  the  feudatories  of  the 
nearest  duke,  or  earl,  or  bishop.  Often,  too,  from  a 
feeling  of  devotion,  they  became  the  feudatories  of  the 
great  religious  establishments.  This  is  the  origin  of  the 
great  number  of  feudal  estates  in  Germany  at  the  pres- 
ent day,  with  the  exception  of  the  north-eastern  prov- 
inces, formerly  Sclavonic,  and  subsequently  conquered, 
and  divided  among  vassals.  They  were  bound,  like 
other  vassals,  under  the  penalty  of  losing  their  lands,  to 


304  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

follow  their  lord  in  all  his  quarrels  against  any  person 
excepting  other  lords  of  whom  they  held  lands,  and 
excepting  also  the  emperor  and  empire.  Moreover,  in 
war  the  vassals  were  required  to  throw  open  their 
fortresses  and  castles  for  the  use  of  their  masters.  The 
dukes,  and  counts,  and  bishops,  who  were  paid  in  fiefs 
for  their  several  services,  stood  in  this  relation  to  the 
Emperor ;  and  inferior  landed  proprietors  stood  also  in 
the  same  relation  to  the  superior  nobility  (for  this  was 
the  origin  of  the  inferior  nobility).  Rich  and  adventur- 
ous peasants,  likewise,  who  preferred  honorable  vassal- 
age to  honest  but  despised  patronage,  invested  some 
noblemen  with  their  lands,  and  were  invested  by  him, 
with  the  consent  of  the  lord  paramount,  with  a  further 
portion  of  his  feudal  territory  (under  tenants). 

The  investure  was  made  from  the  time  of  the  Saxon 
emperors,  in  the  great  vice -regal  fiefs,  by  a  banner 
(which  was  the  ensign  of  command);  in  the  inferior 
ones  by  a  sword;  and  in  the  spiritual  fiefs  by  a  ring 
and  a  staff;  after  the  peace  of  Worms,  in  1122,  which 
confined  the  power  of  the  emperor  to  secular  affairs,  by 
the  scepter.  The  castle-fiefs,  so  called,  were  a  peculiar 
kind  of  military  fiefs,  the  possessor  of  which  was 
bound  to  defend  the  castle  belonging  to  his  lord.  The 
vassal  who  directed  the  defense  was  called  in  the  impe- 
rial fortresses,  a  burgrave.  Thus  the  several  orders 
of  vassals  formed  a  system  of  concentric  circles,  of 


THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM.  305 

which  each  was  under  the  influence  of  the  next,  and  all 
move  around  a  common  center,  the  king,  as  the  supreme 
feudal  lord.  With  military  vassals  another  class  arose. 
From  the  oldest  times,  we  find  in  the  courts  of  kings, 
and  the  governors,  whom  they  appointed,  as  well  as  in 
those -of  the  bishops,  certain  officers,  who  at  first  per- 
formed active  service,  but  were  afterwards  rather  a 
splendid  appendage  to  the  court.  The  four  offices 
of  the  marshal,  the  chamberlain,  the  cup  bearer  and  the 
server,  are  the  oldest  and  most  honorable,  'but  by  no 
means  the  only  ones:  offices  were  as  numerous  as  the 
employments  which  could  be  devised  at  court.  These 
officers,  at  a  period  when  money  was  scarce,  and  the  old 
German  notion  in  full  vfgor,  which  considered  none  but 
landed  proprietors  as  citizens,  and  none  but  the  owners 
of  large  estates  as  noblemen,  were  naturally  rewarded 
by  grants  of  land  during  the  time  of  service ;  and  those 
estates,  like  the  military  fiefs,  became  by  degrees  hered- 
itary. 

The  splendor  of  the  court,  and  the  advantages  accru- 
ing from  these  services,  induced  many  noblemen  to 
solicit  them.  They  became- the  first  in  the  new  class  of 
servants  or  ministers,  which  was  thus  formed;  and  un- 
der them  there  was  a  multitude  of  other  servants, 
particularly  on  the  estates  of  the  nobility.  Every 
farmer  (villicus)  was  paid  for  the  ^cultivation  of  one 
piece  of  land,  by  the  investure  of  another  smaller  piece, 
20 


306  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

and  there  was  scarcely  a  servant  of  the  court  who  had  not 
been  invested,  for  his  services,  with  at  least  a  home  or  a 
garden  in  the  village  adjoining  the  castle.  The  great 
ministerial  officers,  too  indolent  to  execute  the  duties  of 
their  offices  themselves,  with'  the  permission  of  their 
lords,  soon  began  to  commit  them  to  others,  whom  they 
paid  in  like  manner  for  their  administration  by  the 
investure  of  some  other  estates.  Fiefs  were  gradually 
introduced,  which  were  acquired  not  by  military  or 
court  services,  but  by  performing  certain  duties  of  no 
great  difficulty,  amounting  to  little  more  than  the  ac- 
knowledgment of  the  lord's  feudal  superiority;  as  by.  the 
yearly  gift  of  a  horse,  a  pair  of  hounds,  a  falcon,  or  the 
like.  Very  slight  acts  were  often  admitted  as  acknowl- 
edgments, as  the  holding  of  a  stirrup,  or  walking  before 
the  feudal  lord  on  certain  occasions.  Among  the  pres- 
ents and  acts  are  some  of  a  most  ridiculous  character, 
according  to  the  humor  of  the  feudal  lord ;  such  as 
dancing  before  the  army,  performing  some  tri6k,  offer- 
ing an  egg,  a  penny,  &c.  A  refusal  to  perform  feudal 
service,  or  any  other  violation  of  fealty,  was  styled 
felony. 

Upon  this  and  other  difficulties  incident  to  feudal 
property,  as  in  cases  growing  out  of  the  succession,  sur- 
render, alienation  or  under-tenure  of  a  fief,  the  lord  de- 
cided in  a  feudal  court,  filled  by  vassals,  who  were 
required  to  be  of  equal  rank  with  the  accused.  To 


THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM.  807 

appear  in  these  courts  at  the  summons  of  the  lord  of  the 
manor,  and  accept  the  place  of  an  assessor  there,  was 
reckoned  among  the  duties  incident  to  a  ticf.  As  the 
relation  of  lords  and  vassals  became  more  and  more 
widely  spread,  and  the  number  of  vassals  increased  at 
the»-~"£xpense  of  the  ancient  immediate  subjects  of  the 
empire,  the  latter  were  thrown  into  the  background, 
and  at  length  nearly  forgotten. 

In  the  10th  and  llth  centuries,  no  duty  due  from 
subjects  was  known  except  feudal  duties;  the  whole 
German  empire  was  one  vast  feudal  possession,  and  the 
ideas  of  feudal  lords  and  national  sovereigns  were 
wholly  confounded.  If  any  one  was  neither  a  lord  nor 
a  vassal,  he  was  scarcely  looked  upon  as  a  citizen,  and 
no  one  took  care  for  his  safety.  Hence,  few  rich  landed 
proprietors  ventured  to  rely  upon  their  own  strength, 
without  a  feudal  connexion.  And  even  most  of  these 
at  last  yielded  to  the  spirit  of  the  age,  and  became 
royal  vassals,  as  the  lords  of  Brunswick  and  Hesse  and 
the  counts  of  Thuringia  at  that  period  called  dukes  and 
landgraves.  The  emperor  likewise  used  every  means  to 
induce  them  to  adopt  such  a  course.  Thus,  when  the 
haughty  baron  of  Kreuringen,  who  was  the  vassal  of  no 
one,  refused  to  do  homage  to  Frederic  I.  the  enraged 
monarch  invested  him  with  the  right  of  coinage  that  he 
might  become  his  lord.  On  the  other  hand,  it  was  con- 
sidered the  duty  of  the  German  emperor  not  to  ex- 


308  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

tinguish  a  fief  which  reverted  to  the  sovereign  for  want 
of  heirs  to  inherit  it,  but  to  infeoff  some  other  person, 
and  thus  to  secure  the  continuance  of  the  feudal  system, 
on  which  the  continuance  of  the  empire  seemed  to 
depend,  for  a  reversion  of  fiefs  to  the  emperor  would 
bring  into  his  hands  an  excess  of  power ;  and  a  release 
of  the  princes  from  their  feudal  ties  would  be  followed 
by  a  state  of  anarchy. 

Besides,  the  necessary  connection  of  all  the  offices 
with  the  fiefs  rendered  the  line  of  separation  between 
them  very  indistinct,  and  the  service  which  was  paid 
for  a  fief  was  regarded  as  the  fief  itself ;  so  that  persons 
were  no  longer  invested  with*  estates  as  the  reward 
of  office,  but  with  the  office,  as  a  productive  capital,  on 
account  of  the  property  attached  to  it.  The  dukes, 
bishops,  bailiffs  and  burgraves,  sometimes  from  ignor- 
ance, and  sometimes  from  interested  motives,  increased 
this  confusion.  They  made  no  difference  between  their 
fiefs  and  the  districts  and  castles  for  the  government  of 
which  they  were  given  to  them.  They  exercised  in 
these  places,  which  were  filled  mostly  by  their  own  vas- 
sals, the  power  of  feudal  landlords,  and  esteemed  any 
attempt  to  curtail  their  rule  as  an  act  of  flagrant  injus- 
tice, equivalent  to  a  withdrawal  of  the  fief.  In  the 
provinces  where  the  ducal  power  was  early  abolished, 
as  in  Franconia,  Suabia  and  Westphalia,  the  counts  and 
abbots  took  the  same  course ;  while  in  Bavaria,  Misnia, 


THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM.  809 

Thuringia,  Austria  and  Brandenburg,  often  wholly  for- 
getful of  their  dignity  as  imperial  governors,  they  sunk 
into  the  state  of  mere  vassals  to  the  dukes,  landgraves 
and  margraves,  and  were  hardly  able  to  maintain  their 
under-tenures  in  a  state  of  dependence.  From  the 
feudal  system,  the  only  social  organization  of  the  Euro- 
pean states  in  the  middle  ages,  a  new  system  of  civil 
rank  arose.  The  inferior  nobility,  a  rank  intermediate 
between  the  princes  and  freedmen,  owes  its  origin,  it  is 
said,  to  this  institution  ;  and  a  regular  scale  of  rank  was 
formed  among  the  vassals,  without  detriment,  however, 
to  the  principle  of  equal  birth.  The  King  formed  the 
first  class ;  the  spiritual  princes  and  bishops  and  imme- 
diate abbots  constituted  the  second ;  the  lay-princes, 
dukes,  landgraves,  margraves  and  immediate  counts,  the 
third ;  those  barons  or  rich  landed  proprietors  who 
owed  fealty  to  no  onei  but  yet  on  account  of  their 
limited  rights  or  possessions,  were  the  vassals  of  the 
Emperor,  the  fourth  ;  those  freemen  who  stood  in  the 
same  relation  to  the  princes,  the  fifth  ;  the  vassals  of  the 
former,  and  the  servants  of  the  princes,  the  sixth  ;  and 
the  possessors  of  small  fiefs  the  seventh.  This  arrange- 
ment corresponds  to  the  Italian  division  into  principes, 
capitanei,  valvasores  majores,  -oalvasores  minores,  valvasi- 
ni  and  saldati;  the  English,  into  lords,  esquires  and 
free-holders;  the  Spanish  grandees  escuderos,  hidalgos; 
and  the  French  pairs,  barons,  ecuyers  and  valvasseurs. 


310  KNIGHTS   AND   SEA-EJNGS. 

The  title  ecuyers,  escuderos,  esquires,  however,  belongs 
rather  to  chivalry.  Besides  these  ranks,  after  some 
centuries,  the  order  of  citizens  was  formed,  as  being  in- 
cluded under  no  one  of  them. 

The  spirit  of  the  feudal  system,  grounded  on  the 
prevalence  of  landed  property,  was  necessarily  foreign 
to  cities  which  owed  their  origin  to  industry  and 
personal  property,  and  founded  thereon  a  new  sort  of 
power.  Hence  we  see  them  almost  always  involved  in 
open  hostilities  and  contests  with  the  nobility.  The 
principles  of  the  feudal  laws,  the  name  given  to  the  sys- 
tem of  right,  and  obligations  existing  between  feudal 
lords  and  vassals,  were  developed  and  established  by 
the  Lombard  lawyers  of  the  12th  century.  The  col- 
lection of  feudal  laws  and  customs,  which  is  appended 
to  the  Roman  code  under  the  title  of  libri  feudorum,  has 
become  the  code  of  feudal  law  over  half  of  Europe. 
In  the  north  of  Germany,  Denmark,  Prusia,  Poland, 
&c.,  the  old  German  feudal  code  still  obtains,  which 
differs  from  the  Lombard  code  chiefly  in  not  acknowl- 
edging the  right  of  collateral  relations,  as  such  to  suc- 
ceed to  a  fief;  and  in  grounding  the  right  of  feudal 
succession,  not  on  descent  from  the  first  possession  of 
the  fief,  but  only  on  community  of  possession ;  so  that 
diversions  destroyed  the  right  of  inheritance. 

In  place  of  this  community  similar  force  has  been 
given,  since  the  12th  century,  in  the  above  mentioned 


THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM.  311 

countries,  to  a  merely  formal  union,  instituted  in  the 
first  investure,  and  preseived  and  renewed  in  all  cases 
of  division  or  death  (joint  investure).  The  feudal  gov- 
ernment at  a  period  when  a  spirit  of  independence  and 
of  opposition  to  despotism  was  abroad  in  the  land,  was 
well  situated  to  put  into  the  hands  of  one  governor 
as  supreme  feudal  lord,  the  reins  of  the  national  power, 
to  be  employed  against  foreign  enemies  without  endan- 
gering domestic  freedom. 

But  as  every  human  institution  bears  in  itself  the 
gem  of  decay,  the  purity  and  influence  of  feudal  rela- 
tions was  diminished  ;  and  the  strength  of  the  national 
government  declined  amidst  a  spirit  of  disaffection 
and  sedition,  which  became  universal,  when  nobles 
began  to  perceive  that  the  feudal  government  was  not 
naturally  dependent  on  kings,  but  kings  on  it.  Indeed, 
the  sovereigns  had  no  other  security  for  their  subjection 
than  the  feudal  oath,  and  the  menaces  of  punishment, 
which  the  king  had  not  the  ability  to  carry  into  effect, 
as  his  power  was  divided  in  most  of  his  states,  either  by 
investiture  or  by  the  usurpations  of  the  princes.  Thus 
the  vassals  of  the  crown  in  Germany,  Italy,  and  the 
oldest  districts  of  France,  succeeded  in  depriving  the 
king  of  almost  all  power,  even  of  the  external  honor  of 
royalty,  and  never  in  the  two  first  countries,  and  in 
France  only  after  the  extinction  of  the  great  baronial 
families,  could  he  succeed  in  establishing  a  new  author- 


312  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

ity,  independent  of  the  feudal  power ;  while  the 
Britons  alone,  from  the  disputes  of  the  kings  and 
vassals,  have  been  able  to  establish  their  present  gov- 
ernment, with  an  equal  regard  to  the  privileges  of  both. 
9  As  the  improvements  in  the  art  of  war  had  brought 
about  a  total  change  in  modern  times,  and  the  feudal 
militia  had  been  entirely  superseded  by  the  standing 
armies,  the  feudal  government  had  no  means  of  retain- 
ing its  authority,  but  by  the  feudal  services  of  a  civil 
character.  The  feudal  system  is  a  relic  of  the  past,  too 
useless  and  inconvenient  and  too  much  opposed  to  the 
principles  of  the  modern  laws  of  equality  to  be  any 
longer  maintained.  Feudal  service  is  no  longer  de- 
manded, because  it  has  ceased  to  be  useful.  It  has 
been,  and  still  is,  the  great  task  of  the  present  age  in 
Europe,  to  overthrow  the  feudal  system,  an  order  of 
things  which  grew  out  of  times  of  barbarity  and  dis- 
order, and  rested  on  principles  and  circumstances  which 
no  longer  exist. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

f-*1*" 

CONCLUSION. 

THE  Middle  Ages  embrace  that  period,  in  the  history 
of  Europe,  which  begins  with  the  final  destruction  of  the 
Roman  empire,  and,  by  some  historians,  is  considered  to 
end  with  the  reformation;  by  others,  with  the  discovery 
of  America ;  by  others,  with  the  conquest  of  Constanti- 
nople ;  and  again,  by  some,  with  the  invention  of  the  art 
of  printing;  all  of  which  may  be  right,  according  to  the 
special  purpose  of  the  historian.  In  general,  it  may  be 
said,  the  Middle  Ages  embrace  that  period  of  history  in 
which  the  feudal  system  was  established  and  developed, 
down  to  the  most  prominent  events  which  necessarily  led 
to  its  overthrow. 

The  first  centuries  of  the  Middle  Ages  are  often  termed 
the  dark  ages> —  a  name  which  they  certainly  deserve. 
Still,  however,  the  destruction  of  the  Roman  institutions 
by  the  irruption  of  barbarous  tribes,  is  often  unduly  la- 
mented, and  the  beneficial  consequences  attending  it 
overlooked.  True  it  is,  that  many  of  the  acquisitions, 
which  had  cost  mankind  ages  of  toil  and  labor,  were  lost 

313 


314  KNIGHTS  AND   SEA-KINGS. 

in  the  general  wreck,  and  only  regained  by  the  efforts 
of  many  successive  generations ;  the  flowers  of  civiliza- 
tion were  trampled  under  foot  by  barbarous  warriors ; 
and  civil  development  of  society  suffered  a  most  severe 
shock ;  those  nations  to  which  Roman  civilization  had  ex- 
tended previous  to  the  great  invasion  of  the  Teutonic 
tribes,  were  thrown  back,  in  a  great  measure,  to  their 
primeval  barbarism,  and  the  unruly  passion  for  individual 
independence  in  the  northern  tribes,  greatly  retarded  the 
development  of  public  and  private  law,  and  in  some  coun- 
tries, has  entirely  prevented  a  regular  civil  institution. 

The  feudal  system  filled  Europe  with  powerful  barons, 
possessing  large  landed  estates,  and  commanding  the 
services  of  numerous  armed  adherents  ;  and  with  inferior 
lords,  protected  by  the  former. 

They  were  all  possessed  of  land,  with  arms  perpetually 
in  their  hands,  too  proud  to  follow  any  laws  except  those 
of  honor,  which  they  had  themselves  created,  and  des- 
pising all  men  of  peaceful  occupations  as  ignoble,  created 
to  obey  and  serve.  If,  therefore,  the  parties  not  belong- 
ing to  the  military  cast  wished  to  preserve  their  inde- 
pendence, they  could  succeed  only  by  union,  which 
would  afford  them  the  means  of  mutual  protection,  and 
enable  them  to  exercise  their  various  callings  unmolested, 
and  thereby  acquire  wealth  in  money  and  goods,  which 
would  serve  as  a  counterpoise  to  the  landed  possessions 
of  the  feudal  aristocracy.  This  necessity  gave  rise  to 


CONCLUSION.  315 

cities.  Small  cultivators  at  first  under  the  protection 
and  superintendence  of  the  counts,  bishops  and  abbots, 
to  whom  they  subsequently  became  so  formidable,  arose 
and  attained  (particularly  in  the  eleventh  century), 
through  their  own  industry  and  skill,  to  a  state  of  pros- 
peritv^-ivhich  enabled  them  to  purchase  their  freedom, 
and  soon  to  obtain  it  by  force.  They  did  not  remain 
stationary ;  but  small  states  began  to  grow  into  great 
ones ;  and  most  of  them  became  so  bold  as  to  acknowk 
edge  no  superior  except  the  highest  authority  of  the 
country  to  which  they  belonged.  Strong,  high  walls,  im- 
penetrable by  the  rude  military  art  of  the  time,  secured, 
in  conjunction  with  the  valor  of  the  citizens,  the  freedom 
of  the  cities,  and  protected  them  from  the  tyrants  of  the 
land.  Well-ordered  civil  institutions  preserved  peace 
and  prosperity  within,  and  were  secured  by  the  wealth 
acquired  by  trade  and  manufacturing  industry.  Many 
of  the  nobility  themselves,  attracted  by  the  good  order 
and  prosperity  of  the  cities,  established  themselves  there, 
and  were  ambitious  of  obtaining  the  offices  of  govern- 
ment in  commonwealths.  In  fact,  they  soon  usurped 
the  exclusive  possession  of  them,  in  many  of  the  cities. 

The  looser  the  social  organization  in  any  state,  and  the 
more  intolerable  the  pride  of  the  nobility,  the  greater 
became  the  prosperity  and  power  of  the  cities,  which 
grew,  at  length,  so  great,  that  in  Germany  and  Italy, 
these  republics  were  formidable  even  to  the  emperor. 


316  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

In  Arragon,  the  third  estate  was  fully  developed  as  early 
as  the  twelfth  century.  In  England"  the  cities,  in  con- 
junction with  the  barons,  obtained  the  Magna  Charta, 
in  1215,  and  in  France,  they  increased,  in  consequence, 
from  the  circumstances  that  Louis  the  Fat  and  his  suc- 
cessors, particularly  Phillip  the  Fair,  200  years  after 
him,  found  it  their  best  policy  to  protect  them  against 
the  nobility,  and  thereby  increase  their  own  means  of 
resisting  the  order.  What  single  cities  could  not  ac- 
complish, was  effected  by  the  union  of  several ;  as  the 
league  of  the  Lombardy  cities  of  Italy,  the  Hanseatic, 
Rhenish  and  Suabian  leagues,  in  Germany. 

Under  the  protection  of  such  associations,  arid  shel- 
tered by  the  walls  of  the  cities,  all  arts  and  trades,  and 
every  kind  of  civilization,  made  rapid  progress.  Many 
of  the  important  inventions  which  we  now  prize  so 
highly,  originated  among  the  citizens  of  these  small  free 
states,  or  were  suggested  by  their  active  commercial  and 
manufacturing  spirit.  With  constitutions  similar  to 
those  of  antiquity,  the  same  spirit  seemed  to  be  awak- 
ened ;  all  the  virtues  and  vices  of  Athens,  Sparta  and 
Rome,  are  found  in  the  free  states  of  Italy,  where  even 
the  climate  resembled  that  of  the  republics,  which  had 
perished  1500  years  before.  There  was  the  same  love  of 
country,  strict  morals,  and  valor,  the  same  party  con- 
tests, changes  of  administration,  and  ambitious  intrigues, 
and  the  same  (though  differently  directed)  love  of  arts 
and  knowledge. 


CONCLUSION.  817 

But  the  communities  were  not  exempt  from  the  in- 
fluence of  the  domineering  spirit  of  the  times,  which  they 
.opposed.  The  overwhelming  power  of  individuals,  so 
dangerous  to  all  free  states,  became,  through  this  spirit, 
doubly  formidable,  and  compelled  the  oppressed  portion 
of  the,-oitizens,  in  -the  same  distress  which  had  given  rise 
to  their  parent  city,  to  have  recourse  to  the  same  means 
of  relief.  They  bound  themselves  together  for  the  pro- 
tection of  their  rights.  Such  associations,  usually  formed 
among  people  of  the  same  trade,  and  having  for  their 
object,  next  to  security  from  external  enemies,  the  main- 
tenance of  internal  order  in  these  stormy  times,  were 
called  Corporations,  or  Guilds,  and  were  under  the  di- 
rection of  a  master.  The  strictest  regulations  appeared 
necessary  for  the  attainment  of  this  object.  No  one 
without  serving  an  apprenticeship  of  years,  and  advanc- 
ing through  certain  degrees,  could  become  a  member. 
At  a  later  period,  admission  into  the  corporation  was 
purchased  by  individuals  who  did  not  follow  the  business 
of  the  members,  but  wished  to  share  in  the  advantages 
of  the  association.  For  in  the  fourteenth  century,  the 
corporations  became  so  powerful  as  to  obtain  almost  ex- 
clusive possession  of  the  government  of  the  cities,  which, 
until  this  period,  the  nobility  had  mostly  retained  in 
their  own  hands. 

The  Corporations  now  taught  them  that,  as  they  con- 
tributed not  to  the  prosperity  of  the  city  by  their  indus- 


318  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

try,  it  did  not  become  them  to  govern  it.  The  nobility, 
so  far  as  they  continued  in  the  city  after  this  removal 
from  power,  preserved  themselves  in  close  connection, 
and  those  who  resided  in  the  country  formed  confedera- 
cies against  the  power  of  the  cities. 

Associations  which,  to  the  best  men,  appeared  the  only 
means  of  security  from  the  disorders  of  the  time,  became 
so  universal,  that,  almost  everywhere,  persons  of  the 
same  trade  or  profession  were  closely  united,  and  had 
certain  laws  and  regulations  among  themselves. 

Knowledge  itself  in  the  universities,  was  obliged  to  do 
homage  to  this  spirit,  and  the  liberal  arts  themselves,  in 
the  latter  part  of  the  Middle  Ages,  were  fettered  by  the 
restraints  of  corporations,  so  that  knowledge  as  well  as 
arts  was  prevented  from  attaining  that  perfection  which 
the  secure  life  of  the  city  seemed  to  promise  them.  So 
also  the  most  remarkable  institution  of  that  time,  its 
characteristic  production  —  chivalry  —  exhibited  all  the 
peculiarities  of  the  corporations.  War  was  the  profes« 
sion  of  the  nobles.  No  one  of  their  order,  who  was 
not  a  knight,  could  bear  a  lance  or  command  cavalry ; 
and  the  services  of  years,  as  an  attendant  or  squire,  were 
necessary  to  entitle  even  one  of  the  highest  order  to  be 
dubbed  a  knight.  But  squire,  knight  and  baron  were  all 
inspired  with  the  same  spirit  of  honor,  pride,  love  and 
devotion. 

The  religious  zeal  of  the  Middle  Ages  produced  actions 


CONCLUSION.  319 

almost  inconceivable  to  the  cooler  spirit  of  our  time. 
We  see  hundreds  of  youths  and  maidens,  in  the  flower 
of  their  age,  shutting  themselves  up  in  gloomy  walls  or 
retiring  to  wild  deserts,  and  spending  their  lives  in 
prayer  and  penance ;  we  yearly  see  thousands  bare  foot  and 
fasting,,  traveling  many  hundred  miles,  over  sea  and  land, 
to  pray  at  the  grave  of  their  Master ;  we  see  hundreds 
of  thousands  thronging  thither,  from  age  to  age,  with  the 
cross  and  sword,  at  the  risk  of  life,  to  deliver  the  Holy 
Land  from  the  pollution  of  infidels.  This  enthusiastic 
spirit  was  peculiarly  suitable  to  soften  the  ferocity  of  the 
age ;  but  ambitious  men  artfully  turned  it  to  their  own 
selfish  purposes.  Intolerance,  the  destruction  of  the  Jews 
and  heretics,  the  luxurious  splendor  of  the  papal  court, 
and  the  all-embracing  system  of  the  hierarchy,  were  the 
unhappy  fruits  of  this  mistaken  spirit. 

In  opposition  to  the  secular  power,  resting  en  the 
feudal  system,  and  supported  only  by  armies  of  vassals, 
the  pope  formed,  from  the  archbishops,  bishops  and 
priests,  still  more  from  the  generals  of  religious  orders, 
provincials,  abbots,  and  monks,  an  immense  array,  in- 
vincible through  its  power  over  the  conscience,  and 
through  the  spiritual  weapons  which  belong  to  it  and  to 
its  head.  From  the  general  belief  in  his  possession  of 
the  power  to  make  happy  and  unhappy  in  both  worlds, 
to  bind  and  loose  for  eternity,  the  pope  ruled  with  abso- 
lute sway,  the  minds  of  all  Christians.  All  the  kings  of 


820  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

the  west  acknowledged  him  as  the  living  vicegerent  of 
Christ.  Many  were  vassals  to  him  ;  many  tributary  ;  al- 
most all  obedient  and  subject  to  him,  or,  in  a  short  time, 
victims  of  a  vain  resistance. 

At  the  time  in  which  little  idea  was  entertained  of  re- 
sisting princes  by  constitutional  laws,  and  when  the  spirit 
of  the  times  allowed  them  to  dare  whatever  they  could  do, 
it  was  an  inestimable  advantage  that  the  pope  aided  the 
people  for  centuries  in  opposition  to  their  usurpations; 
but  the  luxury,  cruelty,  ambition  and  hostility  to  the 
diffusion  of  knowledge,  which  pervaded  the  clergy,  from 
the  pope  down  to  the  lowest  mendicant  friar,  has  left  a 
deep  stain  upon  these  times.  In  vain  did  men  like  Ar- 
nold of  Brescia  and  the  Waldenses,  Wickliffe,  Huss,  and 
their  followers,  endeavor  to  overthrow  the  hierarchy  by 
reminding  the  people  of  the  simplicity  and  purity  of  the 
primitive  church.  They  found  their  contemporaries,  ac- 
customed to  the  supremacy  of  the  church,  not  yet  ripe 
for  freedom  of  mind,  and  inattentive  to  their  remon- 
strances ;  and  their  noble  endeavors  in  a  great  measure, 
failed.  The  hierarchy  was  able  to  erect  new  bulwarks 
against  new  enemies;  mendicant  orders  and  the  inquisi- 
tion were  instituted  to  prevent  the  dawning  light  of  the 
thirteenth  century  from  entering  the  kingdom  of  dark- 
ness; excommunications  and  interdicts  held  Christendom 
in  terror ;  till  at  length,  when  the  signs  of  the  times,  the 
diffusion  of  a  free  spirit  of  investigation,  the  establish- 


CONCLUSION.  321 

ment  of  a  more  rational  order  in  monarchies,  and  the 
cooling  of  religious  enthusiasm,  announced  that  the 
Middle  Ages  were  drawing  to  a  close,  Luther  proclaimed 
that  Europe  would  no  longer  be  held  in  leading-strings. 
The  ages  of  which  we  have  been  speaking,  so  full 
of  battles  and  adventures,  of  pride  and  daring,  of  devo- 
tion and  love,  must  have  been  poetic  times.  The 
Knights  were  practically  disposed  to  poetic  views  by 
lives  spent  between  battle  and  love,  festive  pomp  and  re- 
ligious exercises.  Hence  we  see  poets  first  appearing 
among  the  Knights  in  the  twelfth  century.  In  southern 
France,  where  chivalry  was  first  established,  we  see  the 
first  sparks  of  modern  poetry.  The  provincial  Trouba- 
dours, who  principally  sung  at  the  court  of  Berengarius 
of  Toulouse,  are  the  founders  of  it.  Soon  after  them  the 
French  Trouveres  and  the  German  Minnesingers  sang  in 
their  mother  tongue ;  the  Italians  at  first,  from  mistrust 
of  their  vulgar  tongue,  in  the  Provincial ;  and  the  Eng- 
lish, from  the  same  cause,  in  the  French.  But  the  min- 
Ktrels  soon  formed  among  the  latter  also  a  national  poe- 
try ;  and  the  Italians,  at  a  later  period  after  the  great 
Dante  brought  the  Tuscan  dialect  into  honor,  obtained 
by  the  improvement  of  it,  a  high  poetic  fame.  In  Spain, 
the  Catalonian  poetry  was  the  same  as  the  Provincial, 
but  the  Castilian  and  Portuguese  borrowed  more  from 
the  Arabians.  With  lyric  poetry  the  epic  was  also  de- 
veloped in  great  beauty  and  power.  Its  mystic  tone,  its 


322  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

indefinite  longing  for  something  more  elevated  than  the 
realities  of  earth,  entitle  us  to  distinguish  this  epic  from 
the  ancient  by  the  name  romantic. 

The  romantic  epics  of  the  Middle  Ages  are  mostly 
confined  to  three  cycles  of  stories.  The  first  of  these 
cycles  is  the  German  Nibelungen,  and  the  stories  of 
Siegfried,  Atilla,  and  other  heroes  of  the  time  of  the 
general  migration  of  the  nations.  To  the  second  belong 
the  equally  old  tales  of  the  British  King  Arthur,  his 
Round  Table,  and  the  Sangraal,  also  Titurel,  Parzival, 
The  Enchanter  Merlin,  and  others.  The  third  em- 
braces the  originally  French  collection  of  stories  of 
Charlemagne,  and  his  Peers,  of  Roland,  the  Enchanter 
Malegys,  and  the  Four  Sons  of  Haymon. 

Besides  these  subjects,  the  poetic  appetite  of  the 
Middle  Ages  seized  upon  the  historic  events  of  ancient 
and  modern  times,  particularly  the  deeds  of  Alexander 
the  Great,  and  the  crusades,  likewise  upon  Scripture 
history,  and  even  upon  the  subjects  of  the  ancient 
epics  of  Homer  and  Virgil,  for  new  poetical  works. 
But  whether  from  political  causes,  or  as  we  believe, 
from  the  downfall  of  chivalry,  and  from  an  increasing 
spirit  of  reflection,  the  last  centuries  of  the  Middle 
Ages  were  unfavorable  to  poetry.  The  voice  of  the 
minstrel  was  almost  entirely  silent  in  Germany,  France 
find  Spain,  even  in  the  fourteenth  century ;  but  Italy 
had  now  its  Petrarch  and  Boccaccio,  and  England  its 


CONCLUSION.  323 

Chaucer.  In  the  thirteenth  century  there  was  not  a  story 
in  the  cycles  before-mentioned  which  was  not  eagerly 
sung  by  many  poets ;  and  more  than  1400  love  songs  by 
136  poets  of  this  century  are  contained  in  the  Manesse 
collection  alone;  but  hardly  a  single  poet  appeared 
among  the  Knights,  after  the  fourteenth  century.  The 
epic  poems  of  former  times  gave  place  to  prose  ro- 
mances, in  which  their  stories  were  diluted,  and  the 
lyric  poetry,  in  France  and  Germany,  fell  into  the  rude 
hands  of  the  Master-singers,  who,  by  a  studied  ob- 
servance of  rules,  preserved  its  formal  existence.  So 
did  it  continue  till  the  fifteenth  century,  which,  atten- 
tive only  to  the  great  events  which  were  in  preparation, 
and  the  struggles  which  preceded  them,  and  actuated 
by  the  spirit  of  reflection  from  which  they  proceeded, 
was  far  removed  from  that  free  flow  of  feeling  which 
.had  given  birth  to  the  poetry  of  the  past  time. 

It  was  not  till  the  end  of  the  Middle  Ages,  when  the 
early  spirit  of  poetry  lived  only  in  remembrance,  that 
Ariosto  took  the  stories  of  Charlemagne's  peers  from 
the  nursery,  and  gave  them  new  dignity.  Spain  and 
England  received  a  new  national  poetry  from  Cervantes 
and  Shakspeare.  But  how  great  is  the  difference  be- 
tween these  creative  geniuses,  complete  masters  of  their 
subjects,  who  poured  forth  their  whole  souls  in  their 
poetry,  and  those  simple  poets  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
who  took  the  world  as  it  was,  and  were  rather  the 


324  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

organs  of  the  spirit  of  poetry  in  the  people,  than  inde- 
pendent poets. 

Among  the  arts  of  the  Middle  Ages  architecture  was 
distinguished  by  its  peculiar  character.  In  the  noblest 
buildings  of  antiquity,  the  form  of  the  first  rude  dwell- 
ing-houses is  not  to  be  mistaken  ;  they  appear  only  as 
the  ornamented  forms  of  abodes  which  necessity  created, 
and  can  only  be  called  fine  buildings ;  but  the  Gothic 
architecture  of  the  Middle  Ages  was  founded  on  a  deep 
and  great  conception.  This  conception  which  appears 
in  the  union  of  the  grandeur  of  great  masses  with  the 
most  finished  delicacy  of  parts,  was  the  representa- 
tion of  the  world.  The  othsr  arts,  which  in  the  four- 
teenth and  fifteenth  centuries  came  from  Greece  into 
the  Western  world,  attained  their  greatest  splendor, 
in  the  Middle  Ages,  upon  the  Lower  Rhine  and  in 
Italy. 

The  weak  side  of  the  Middle  Ages  is  the  scientific. 
The  youthful  spirit  of  the  time  bent  upon  action,  could 
not  devote  itself  to  a  sedentary  life  and  continued 
study.  The  efforts  of  Charlemagne  to  encourage 
science  and  instruct  the  people,  hardly  produced  any 
effect  beyond  his  life ;  for  they  were  not  in  the  spirit  of 
the  time.  Several  centuries  after  him  the  German 
tribes  considered  no  knowledge  of  use,  but  that  of  man- 
aging the  lance  and  the  steed.  The  barbarism  was  so 
great  that  most  of  the  laity,  even  the  most  distinguished, 


CONCLUSION.  825 

could  scarcely  read  or  write.  He  who  was  instructed 
in  these  was  considered  a  distinguished  scholar,  and  he 
who  obtained  more  knowledge,  particularly  in  mathe- 
matics or  natural  science,  exposed  himself  to  the  danger 
of  being  burnt  as  a  sorcerer.  But  the  monks  by  their 
retired  situation  and  the  leisure  which  they  enjoyed,  as 
well  as  by  the  neccessity  of  some  knowledge  of  the 
Latin  language,  which  the  Roman  Catholic  ritual  re- 
quired, were  driven  to  a  more  literary  employment,  to 
which  they  were  educated  in  the  schools  of  the  cathe- 
drals and  convents.  But  their  literary  labors  were 
confined  to  the  copying  of  the  old  writers,  particularly 
the  fathers  of  the  church,  and  to  accounts  of  the  occur- 
rences of  the  times  in  meagre  chronicles.  Nevertheless 
we  are  indebted  to  them.  Through  their  activity  the 
valuable  remains  of  ancient  times,  materials  and  incite- 
ments to  new  improvements  have  been  in  a  great 
measure  preserved  to  us ;  and  from  their  annals  we 
gather  our  only  knowledge  of  the  events  and  manners 
of  that  time.  Moreover,  the  Latin  literature  which  was 
common  to  all  the  people  of  the  west,  not  merely  in  the 
affairs  of  the  church,  but  in  science  and  public 
transactions,  produced  a  certain  agreement  in  their  gen- 
eral character,  which  contributed  much  to  promote 
intercourse  and  improvement. 

The  East  has  no  Middle  Age  like  that  of  Europe ;  yet 
the  introduction  of  Mohammedanism  and  the   Arabic 


326  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

literature  make  epochs  there.  But  as  the  spirit  of  man 
is  hostile  to  a  partial  developement,  in  the  eleventh 
century  the  need  of  thinking  was  again  felt  in  Europe  ; 
the  taste  for  knowledge  awoke  here  and  there  partly  by 
means  of  the  monasteries,  but  afterwards  through  the 
arts  and  industry  which  prevailed  in  the  cities  ;  study 
was  encouraged  by  Henry  II.  of  England,  the  Alphonsos 
and  other  intellectual  princes.  From  these  times,  (the 
periods  of  Lanfranc,  Abelard,  John  of  Salisbury  and 
others)  the  Middle  Ages  produced  distinguished  in- 
dividuals whom  the  coldness  of  their  contemporaries 
in  the  cause  of  science  only  urged  to  a  more  ardeut  pur- 
suit of  it. 

Meantime  the  necessity  was  felt  of  defending  the 
doctrines  of  the  church  against  unbelief  and  heresy. 
This  led  to  the  sharpening  of  the  intellect  by  dialec- 
tics; hence  the  church  dogmatics,  or  theology,  was 
formed,,  from  which  philosophy  at  length  proceeded. 
As,  in  scholastic  theology,  the  dogmas  of  the  church 
were  early  received  as  authority ;  so,  in  the  domain  of 
laws,  the  Roman  code  soon  obtained  a  complete  ascen- 
dency ;  and  the  jurisconsults  of  that  time  were  never 
weary  in  studying  it,  learning  it  by  heart,  and  explain- 
ing it  by  glossaries  and  illustrations.  The  students 
of  philosophy  pursued  the  same  course  with  the  subtle 
Aristotle,  for  whom  the  Middle  Ages,  although  ac- 
quainted with  him  only  through  Arabic  translations  or 


CONCLUSION.  327 

rtfacimentoif,  had  an  unbounded  respect.  Unfortunate- 
ly, however,  for  the  progress  of  philosophy,  these 
commentaries,  glosses  and  abridgments  occasioned  the 
neglect  of  the  original. 

When  the  union  of  scholars,  in  particular  places  gave 
birth^to  Universities,  these  received  the  stamp  of  the 
time,  both  in  the  corporate  character  which  was  given 
them,  and  the  absorbing  interest  which  was  taken  in  the 
study  of  dialectics.  Only  jurisprudence,  theology  and 
what  was  called  philosophy  (which  was  in  fact  the  art 
of  disputing  with  subtllty  upon  every  subject,)  were 
taught ;  and  these  sciences,  especially  since  the  middle 
of  the  twelfth  century,  had  degenerated  into  a  mere 
tinkling  of  scholastic  sophistry.  Medicine,  as  regards 
any  useful  purpose,  was  taught  at  this  time  only  by 
some  Arabs,  and  students  of  Salerno  who  had  been 
instructed  by  them ;  in  other  respects  it  was  a  slave  of 
astrology,  and  an  object  of  speculation  to  ignorant  im- 
posters,  principally  of  the  Jewish  nation.  Philology 
flourished  in  the  time  of  Lanfranc  and  Abelard,  but 
was  again  forgotten  in  the  eleventh  and  twelfth  centu- 
ries. Notwithstanding  the  unprofitable  character  of 
what  was  taught  at  this  time,  teachers  stood  in  high 
esteem,  and  the  highest  academic  rank  was  considered 
equal  to  knighthood. 

The  universities,  on   their  side,  showed  themselves 


328  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KENGS. 

worthy  such  honor  by  their  independence  of  pope  and 
prince.  With  all  its  worthlessness,  the  disputatious 
spirit  of  the  time  has  this  good  effect,  that  truths  were 
advanced  and  maintained  in  the  universities,  which 
were  alarming  to  the  vigilant  hierarchy;  and  Luther's 
theses,  in  Wiltenburg,  contributed  in  no  small  degree  to 
bring  on  the. reformation,  and  thereby  to  the  shedding 
of  new  light  upon  science.  Yet  the  reformation  did  not 
give  the  first  signal  for  higher  intellectual  endeavors 
and  freedom  of  thought;  it  was  rather  produced  by  this 
striving  and  this  freedom,  which  had  originated  some 
centuries  before  with  the  flight  of  the  Greek  scholars 
from  Constantinople,  and  the  invention  of  the  art  of 
printing  had  been  encouraged  by  the  lovers  of  science 
among  the  princes  of  Italy,  and  had  shone  forth  even  in 
Germany,  in  the  brotherhood  of  Deventer  in  Wessel, 
Erasmus,  Celtes,  and  others.  But  with  the  appearance 
of  these  men,  with  the  rise  of  the  sun  of  the  new 
day,  the  romantic  twilight  of  the  Middle  Ages  faded 
away. 

We  shall  now  give  briefly  the  chief  epochs  of  the 
history  of  the  Middle  Ages.  The  formation  of  separate 
Germanic  states  succeeded  the  general  irruption  of  the 
barbarians,  and  was  followed,  after  some  hundred 
years,  by  the  universal  monarchy  of  Charlemagne. 
This  had  only  a  short  continuance  ;  but  it  left  the  idea 


CONCLUSION.  829 

of  the  unity  of  the  whole  of  Christendom  under  a  spir- 
itual head,  and  under  the  protection  of  the  newly-re- 
vived Roman  empire  —  an  idea  which  had  a  powerful 
influence  during  the  whole  of  the  Middle  Ages.  New 
modifications  of  the  European  states  after  the  fall  of  the 
Carkivingians.  The  devastations  of  new  tribes  of  bar- 
barians,—  the  Saracens  in  the  south,  the  Normans  in 
the  north  and  west,  and  the  Hungarians  in  the  east,  all 
of  whom  at  length  became  subject  to  the  Germanic 
power.  Colonies  of  the  Normans  in  France,  Italy  and 
England.  Christianity  gained  a  footing  among  the 
Sclavonian  tribes.  Struggles  between  the  spiritual  and 
secular  power  convulsed  Christendom.  The  idea  of 
their  unity  as  well  as  of  knighthood,  is  ennobled  in  the 
crusades  whose  success  these  discords  frustrated.  Ori- 
gin of  the  cities  and  of  the  third  estate.  Commerce 
with  the  east  by  means  of  Italy  and  the  Hanse  towns. 
Corruption  of  the  clergy,  at  two  epochs,  after  Charle- 
magne and  after  Gregory  VII.  Mendicant  orders  and 
the  inquisition.  Decline  of  the  imperial  dignity  in  Ger- 
many and  Italy.  Desolation  of  these  countries  by 
private  warfare.  Other  kingdoms  are  now  enabled  to 
obtain  more  solidity.  The  flourishing  of  new  arts  and 
knowledge.  Universities.  The  popes  humbled  by 
their  dependence  upon  France,  and  the  great  schism. 
Councils  at  Constance  and  Basle.  Subjection  of  the 


330  KNIGHTS  AND  SEA-KINGS. 

Greek  empire;  hence  the  formidableness  of  the  Turk- 
ish power  to  the  west  of  Europe ;  and  hence,  also 
the  diffusion  of  learning  by  the  fugitive  scholars 
of  Constantinople.  Printing.  The  discovery  of  the 
New  World,  and  of  a  way  by  sea  to  the  East  Indies. 
The  Reformation. 


THE  END. 


D.    LOTHROP  COMPANY'S 


YONGE  (Charlotte  M.). 

LANCES  OF  LYNWOOD.  I2mo,  illustrated,  i.co.     (4) 
Recommended  by  the  State  Boards  of  several  States  for  their  public  school  libraries. 

"'The  Lances  of  Lynwcod'  is  con-  "  It  is  full  of  the  ring  and  romance  of 

structed  of  fourteenth-century  materials  the   feudal   ages,   describing  the    bright 

gathered   from  historical  and  legendary  side   and    ennobling  influences  of  chiv- 

granaries.     It  is  one  of  the  best  books  airy."  —  Living  Church,  Chicago, 

for  our  boys  and  girls.     It  opens  up  his-  "  There  is  a  true  adherence  to  nature 

tory,  quickens  the  imagination  and  fixes  and  great  dramatic  skill  displayed  in  the 

the  love  of  reading."  —  Syracuse  Stan-  exhibition  of  character"  —  North  Brit- 

dard.  ish  Review. 

GOLDEN  DEEDS.  I2mo,  illustrated,  cloth,  i.oo;  gilt  top, 
1-25-  (4) 

Heroic  and  noble  actions  mostly  culled  out  of  history,  making  fifty  different  tales  of 
lofty  duty,  for  young  and  old. 

THE  PRINCE  AND  THE  PAGE.  I2mo,  illustrated,  i.oo 
(4) 

A  story  of  the  Last  Crusade. 

THE  LITTLE  DUKE:  Richard  the  Fearless.  I2mo,  illus- 
trated, i.oo.  (4) 

LITTLE  LUCY'S  WONDERFUL  GLOBE.  23  full-page 
illustrations,  I2mo,  cloth,  .75. 

HISTORICAL  SERIES. 

Recommended  by  the  State  Boards  of  several  States  for  their  public  school  libraries. 

Miss  Yonge,  while  always  boldly  and  continuously  outlining  the  course  of  historical 
events,  has  the  knack  of  seizing  upon  incidents  which  reveal  the  true  character  of  his- 
torical personages,  so  that  these  volumes  are  eminently  calculated  to  teach  as  well  as 
to  interest.  The  language  is  simple  yet  expressive,  the  freedom  of  treatment  bold  yet 
accurate.  The  characters  appear  and  disappear  with  all  the  serious  brevity  of  moving 
time,  and  seem  to  speak  for  themselves. 

YOUNG  FOLKS'  BIBLE  HISTORY.  I2mo,  illustrated, 
1.50. 

"  The  author  presents  in  her  dramatic  "  One  of  the  best  books  for  its  purpose 

style  many  of  the  striking  incidents  and  which    we    have    found." — Christian 

stories  of  the  sacred  book.     It  is  not  only  Register. 

entertaining,  but  as  fascinating  as  any  "We  shall  be  much  mistaken  if  this 

romance,  yet  nothing  of  the  spirit  of  the  book  does  not  prove  to  be  useful  in  many 

Bible  is  disturbed,  and  the  lesson  is  only  homes,  in  fixing  the  facts  of  Scripture 

more  vividly  brought  out  by  the  genius  history  in  the  young  minds  and  in  giving 

of   the  artist." — Western  Educational  them  a  good  perspective  of  that  history 

Journal,  Chicago.  as  a  whole."  —  Independent,  New  York. 

YOUNG    FOLKS'    HISTORY    OF    ENGLAND.     I2mo, 

illustrated,  1.50. 

Beginning  with  a  period  prior  to  the  Christian  era,  it  outlines  English  history 
through  the  vicissitudes  of  the  Roman,  Danish  and  Norman  invasions,  through  the 
subsequent  civil  strifes,  and  a  large  portion  of  the  peaceful  reign  of  the  good  Victoria. 
Only  those  facts  are  presented  which  are  at  once  most  picturesque,  most  interesting 
and  most  easily  comprehended.  In  the  hands  of  the  young  it  is  an  irresistible  tempta- 
tion to  history. 

YOUNG  FOLKS'  HISTORY  OF  FRANCE.  i2mo,  illus- 
trated, 1.50. 

To  arrange  the  confused  facts  of  French  history  In  such  an  order  as  to  make  them 
comprehensible  to  children  is  a  difficult  task.  Miss  Yonge  has  undertaken  to  do  this 
and  has  succeeded  admirably.  She  has  done  more  than  tell  an  interesting  story,  for 
she  has  attached  some  real  characteristic  to  each  reijrn,  and  has  translated  the  leading 
political  motives  into  something  that  can  enter  an  intellect  of  seven  or  eight  years  old. 


SELECT   LIST   OF   BOOKS. 


CLARK  (Edmund). 

BIBLE    LESSONS.     For  Sundayschool  Concerts  and   Anni- 
versaries.    I2mo,  i.oo. 

CLARK  (Rev.  F.  E.),  President  of  the  United  Society 

of  Christian  Endeavor. 
OUR  BUSINESS    BOYS.     i6mo,  .60. 

"Here  is  a  little  book  literally  worth  opinions  touching  the  qualifications  nee- 
its  weight  in  gold,  and  one  which  ought  essary  in  a  young  man  to  command  sue- 
to  be  thoroughly  read  by  every  boy  who  cess  — Portland  A  rgiis. 
contemplates  a  business  career.  The  au-  "  This  little  book  contains  an  amount 
thor  seeing  how  many  boys  are  entering  of  valuable  truth  quite  out  of  proportion 
stores  and  counting-rooms  instead  of  to  its  small  compass  .  .  .  It  is  the 
learning  trades  or  remaining  on  farms,  condensed  testimony  of  the  successful 
took  the  pains  to  write  to  nearly  a  him-  majority  as  to  the  qualities  which  go  to 
dred  business  men  of  this  city  for  the  the  making  of  success."  —  ChristianReg- 
purpose  of  ascertaining  their  respective  isier,  Boston. 

DANGER    SIGNALS.     i2mo,  .75. 

"The  addresses  which   compose  the  Sappers  and  Miners  of  Character;  Fri- 

volume,  on  some  of  the  sins  most  likely  volity,   Selfishness,   Dishonesty." — The 

to  affect  the  young  in  large  cities,  were  Advance. 

delivered  to  large  audiences  of  young  "  There  is  enough  to  save  a  generation 
people  in  Boston  churches  Many  books  of  young  men  if  they  would  give  heed 
of  advice  have  been  written  for  the  young,  thereto.  Put  this  book  in  the  trunk  of 
but  there  are  exceedingly  few  that  the  the  young  man  when  he  leaves  home  for 
young  will  read.  We  believe  that  this  business  life,  or  college  or  even  for  a  sum- 
volume  like  Holland's  Letters  is  likely  to  mer  vacation."  —  Christian  Union. 
prove  an  exception  The  several  topics  "Strong,  clear,  fatherly  warnings."  — 
treated  are  King  Alcohol;  Dirt  in  Ink;  Union  Signal. 

Trash  in    Ink;  The  Low  Theatre;  The  "It   hits  the  nail  on  the   head  every 

Gambling  Den ;  The  Leper  of  Impurity,  time."  —  Congregationalist. 

MOSSBACK  CORRESPONDENCE.     i2mo,  i.oo. 

A  series  of  letters  upon  religious  themes.  They  originally  appeared  in  the  Golden 
Rule  where  they  deservedly  attracted  a  great  deal  of  attention.  The  writer,  Mr.  Moss- 
back,  is  what  is  commonly  known  as  an  "old  fogy."  Being  such,  he  of  course  finds 
a  great  deal  to  criticise  in  the  methods  of  the  church  of  that  period  ;  in  fact  he  spares 
neither  choir,  pew  or  pulpit.  But  his  satire  is  always  kindly  and  its  purpose  is  reform 
While  the  letters  are  really  serious  there  is  so  much  spice  withal  that  the  seriousness 
is  delightfully  obscured.  Consequently  the  reader  is  helped  without  being  bored. 

CLARK  (H.  H.,  U.  S.  N.). 

BOY  LIFE  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  NAVY,     izmc* 

illustrated,  1.50. 

This  is  the  story  of  a  young  boy  from  Maine  who  shipped  in  the  U.  S.  Navy. 

"While    telling   his   adventures,    the        tractive  life  that  is  little  known  to  the  gen, 
author    gives  a  detailed  account  of  the        eral  public,  and  full  enough   of  adven- 
entire  naval  system  from  the  boy's  first        tufts  to  please  all  boy  readers.1'  —  Lite* 
entrance ;    information   is   furnished  re-        rary  News,  New  York. 
gardir^  wages,  services  required,  mode  The  writer  of  this  volume,  while  mak« 

of  enlisting,  studies^and  the  entire  life        ing  an   intensely  interesting  story,   has 
aboard  the  U.  S  training-ship  Minnesota.         avoided  the  danger  of  sensationalism."  — 
The  !>™k  is  both  interesting  and  instruct-        Chicago  Herald, 
ivo ;  it  is  a  true  picture  of  a  healthy,  at- 


D.    LOTHROP  COMPANY'S 


BOYD  (Pliny  Steele). 
UP  AND  DOWN    THE  MERRIMAC.     Illustrated,  I2mo, 

1. 00. 

A  vacation  trip  upon  one  of  the  most  charming  rivers  in  the  world,  made  in  a  dory 
by  the  author  and  his  two  sons  for  the  purpose  of  hunting,  fishing  and  a  good  time 
generally. 

"  The  author  is  a  shrewd  thinker;  his  run  through  its  pages  render  it  peculiarly 
reflections  upon  men  and  things  which  attractive/'  —  Philadelphia  Item. 

BOYDEN  (Anna  L.). 
ECHOES  FROM   HOSPITAL  AND  WHITE  HOUSE. 

I21T10,    1. 00.          (4) 

"  Anna  L.  Boyden  has  undertaken  to  is  a  well-written,  earnest  account  of  Mrs. 

commemorate  the  services  of  Mrs.  Re-  Pomroy's  valuable  work  as  a  nurse,  and, 

becca  K   Ppmroy  in  the  hospitals  of  the  as  such,  an  addition  which  all  will   be 

army  and  in    the  family  of    President  glad  to  have  to  the  bibliography  of  the 

Lincoln  during  the  Rebellion     The  book  late  War.''  —  Chicago  Tribune. 

BOYESEN  (Hjalmar  Hjorth). 
VAGABOND  TALES.     Square  i2mo,  1.25. 

A  collection  of  characteristic  novellettes  by  one  of  the  most  entertaining;  and  most 
popular  of  modern  story-tellers.  No  writer  living  —  scarcely  excepting  even  the  great 
r.jornstem  —  so  thoroughly  understands  the  Norse  character  and  when  into  this  is  in- 
fused the  American  element,  the  succes  of  Prof.  Boyesen's  tales  is  easily  understood. 
There  is  a  breeziness,  a  vigor  and  a  manliness  about  his  characters  that  captivate  the 
reader  at  once  and  combine  dramatic  force  with  literary  skill.  Tha  stories  included  in 
this  volume  are:  Crooked  John;  A  Child  of  the  Age;  Monk  Tellenbach's  Exile; 
A  Disastrous  Partnership;  Liberty's  Victim;  A  Perilous  Incognito;  Charity. 

BOY'S  WORKSHOP  (A). 

By  a  Boy  and  his  Friends.  With  an  introduction  by  Henry  Ran- 
dall Waite.  Illustrated,  I2mo,  i.oo. 

Written  by  '  a  boy  and  his  friends,' and  do  a  great  many  other  things.     It  is  a 

takes  ?  on  right  into  A  Boy's  Workshop;  book  that  every  boy  would  like  to  have, 

tells  y-iu  how  to  make  and  to  use  a  saw-  and  that  he  ought  to  have."  —  Ai/7>aitctt 

horse  and   a   work-bench ;    how   to   use  Chicago. 

tools  nnd  to  care  for  them;  lets  you  into  "  Next  to  actual  service  with  an  intel- 

the  secret  of  book-rests,  foot-rests,  tables,  ligent  carpenter  or    cabinet-maker  this 

cabinets,  catch-alls,  etc.  ;  shows  you  how  book  is  to  be  valued  for  its  instruction  in 

to  build  wooden  tents,  make  a  fernery,  the  art  and  mystery  of  tools."  —  CArit- 

construct  a  railway  and  train,  bind  mag-  tian  Advocate,  New  York, 
azines,  take  photographs,  tie  knots,  and 

BRAVE  GIRLS. 

lamo,  illustrated,  1.50. 

When  young  people  see  the  name  of  Nora  Perry,  Mary  Hartwell  Catherwood  or 
Frank  H.  Converse  appended  to  a  story,  they  prick  up  their  ears  at  once,  for  they 
have  learned  to  expect  something  of  unusual  interest.  They  will  not  be  disappointed 
when  they  open  this  book  and  read  about  Glen  Hastings,  Kate  Oxfotd,  Sharly  Kay. 
mond  and  Bessy  May  —  brave  girls  every  one,  but  in  divers  ways.  Other  writera 
almost  as  well  known  as  these  favorites  have  helped  in  no  slight  degree  to  swell  thia 
tribute  to  the  girta. 


SELECT   LIST   OF   BOOKS. 


DIAZ  (Mrs.  A.  M.),  continued. 
BYBURY  TO  BEACON  STREET.     I2mo,  1.25. 

"Mrs.  Diaz  uses  all  her  j  owers  of  conflicting  claims  of  home,  society,  char- 
earnestness  and  humor  to  induce  women  ity  and  shopping,  as  poor  Mrs.  Lammer- 
to  elevate  their  own  lives  and  to  care  for  kin's  of  liybury  by  those  of  cooking,  sew- 
something  besides  material  things,  while  ing,  baby-tending,  etc.,  which  all  seem  to 
making  their  homes  sweet,  orderly  and  require  attention  at  once.  Amusing  as 
"igood  to  live  in.  Her  illustrations  are  well  as  distressing  are  the  stories  of  their 
original  and  to  the  point.  This  last  book  tormented  hours.  Sunlight  in  the  house, 
is  one  of  the  most  amusing  and  also  one  simplicity  in  dress  and  diet,  self-respect 
of  the'.wost  useful  that  Mrs.  Diaz  has  instead  of  the  worship  of  wealth  and 
writfcn ;  and  it  must  be  that  hundreds  of  fashion,  education  of  women  in  skilled 
families  will  find  in  the  author  a  true  labor,  are  among  the  things  Mrs.  Diaz 
helper. "  —  Boston  Post.  advocates  by  the  mouths  of  her  speakers. 
"  Sensible  and  humorous  is  Mrs.  A.  These  and  other  topics  are  touched  with 
M.  Diaz's  '  Bybury  to  Beacon  Street.*  the  bright  insight  and  penetrating  com- 
The  villagers  of  Bybury  are  supposed  to  mon  sense  which  are  the  worst  enemies 
meet  together,  and  to  talk  and  write  of  stupidity  and  folly.  The  social  lump 
about  their  experiences,  as  well  as  to  dis-  needs  plenty  of  such  leaven.  We  hope 
cuss  various  subjects.  We  hear  also  from  that  both  in  city  and  country  the  book 
the  busy  Beacon  Street  woman,  whose  will  be  widely  read."  —  New  York  Na- 
days  are  as  painfully  subdivided  by  the  tion. 

THE  CATS'  ARABIAN  NIGHTS.  8vo,  illustrated,  boards, 
1.25. 

The  wonderful  cat  story  of  cat  stories  told  by  Pussyanita  that  saved  the  lifes  of  all 
the  cats,  the  funniest,  wittiest  story  that  ever  was  [so  says  Pussyanita] ;  and  that  is 
why  it  is  so  wonderfftl.  King  Grimalkum  must  have  been  a  credulous  fellow;  but 
nobody  blames  him  for  losing  his  wits  to  such  a  teller  of  cat  stories. 

"This  is  the  most  extensive  and  de-        ever  seen." — Woman's  Journal. 
lightful  collection  of  cat  stories  we  have 

THE  JIMMYJOHNS   AND    OTHER  STORIES.     121110, 

illustrated,  i.oo. 

A  book  to  enchant  young  folks  and  old  folks  with  young  hearts. 

"  Every  respectably  brought-up  girl  and        of  what  children  like  to  read,  and  no  one 
boy  has  read  the  Jimmyjohns  and  had        knows  better  than  she  how  to  prepare  it." 
heaps  of  enjoyment  out  of  it.     Mrs.  Dia*.        — Boston  Transcript. 
seems  to  have  an  instinctive  knowledge 

FIRESIDE  CHRONICLES.     8vo,  illustrations  by  Boz,  1.25. 

Fifteen  different  chronicles,  every  one  of  them  funnier  than  the  last  one,  and  five 
times  as  many  pictures  of  what  they're  about.  A  great  deal  of  wisdom  in  with  the  fun. 

LUCY  MARIA.*  I2mo,  illustrated,  i.oo. 

A  STORY  BOOK  FOR  CHILDREN.*  i2mo,  illustrated 
i.oo. 


STORY  TREE    SERIES.  180  stories  illustrated  with    180 
pictures.     6  vols.,  iSmo,  1.50. 

MERCY  JANF..  LRAVE  LITTLE  GOOSE  GIRL. 

JAMIE  AND  JOE.  THE  ELLSON  CHILDREN. 

TAB  AND  HER  KITTENS.  THE  PROCESSION. 


,   ,  .   ; 


-Jl'Q. 
/ 


Isi 


